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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — low music
  3. land — to come down
  4. swing — music
  5. scale — in music
  6. key — in music
  7. land — a country
  8. net — in sport
  9. scale — size or range
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. bass — the fish
  12. net — for catching
  13. snap — to click
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. drill — the tool
  16. drill — army training
  17. swing — to play on
  18. drill — a practice
  19. net — after costs
  20. land — ground
  21. swing — in golf
  22. key — the most important part
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. key — for a lock

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