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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. capital — money
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. bass — the fish
  5. rest — what's left
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rest — a break
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. court — for sport
  12. capital — a city
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. wake — a trail
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. court — of law
  21. date — the fruit
  22. court — of a king
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rash — a series

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