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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.

Make a worksheet

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

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. bass — low music
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. present — the time now
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. bass — the fish
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. stock — shares
  12. mine — for digging
  13. present — there
  14. saw — the tool
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. chair — a leader
  19. stock — goods
  20. date — the fruit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. saw — the tool
  24. date — on the calendar

Multiple-meaning words list

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

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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