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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. net — for catching
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. capital — money
  7. perch — the fish
  8. fine — all right
  9. bore — to drill
  10. dip — to sink
  11. bore — to tire
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bass — the fish
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. capital — a city
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — in sport
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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