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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pop — music
  3. toast — bread
  4. scale — size or range
  5. bass — low music
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. pop — soda
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. bass — the fish
  11. capital — money
  12. scale — in music
  13. capital — a city
  14. spell — letters
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. spell — magic
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. pop — to visit
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. spell — a short time

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