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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 116 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. scale — in music
  4. land — a country
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. bass — the fish
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. ground — a position
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. ground — crushed
  12. squash — to crush
  13. land — to come down
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. land — ground
  16. squash — the sport
  17. scale — size or range
  18. plane — a tool
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — in a race
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. ground — the earth
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. scale — for weighing

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