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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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. field — farmland
  3. plane — a tool
  4. staff — employees
  5. lean — to bend
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. wound — an injury
  14. staff — employees
  15. lean — thin
  16. staff — a stick
  17. bass — the fish
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. field — for sport
  20. stock — goods
  21. wound — an injury
  22. field — a subject
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — a soup base

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