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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. last — to go on
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cap — of ice
  6. bass — low music
  7. rash — a series
  8. field — for sport
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rash — hasty
  12. last — final
  13. degree — an amount
  14. bass — the fish
  15. degree — temperature
  16. rock — a stone
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cap — a lid
  19. rock — music
  20. last — finally
  21. field — a subject
  22. degree — from a university
  23. field — farmland
  24. cap — a hat

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