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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 116 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. chip — for betting
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. club — a group
  7. rash — a series
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. chip — to eat
  10. cold — not warm
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. rash — hasty
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. wax — to grow
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bass — the fish
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — the tool
  21. club — for golf
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. cold — an illness

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