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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. staff — employees
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. bass — the fish
  9. game — a match
  10. staff — a stick
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. stem — to come from
  15. land — to come down
  16. wax — to grow
  17. land — ground
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. staff — employees
  20. bass — low music
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. game — wild animals
  24. land — a country

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com