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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. pop — music
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bass — the fish
  8. kid — to tease
  9. saw — the tool
  10. field — for sport
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. pop — to visit
  16. field — farmland
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pop — soda
  21. kid — child
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. saw — the tool
  24. field — a subject

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