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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bass — the fish
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. chip — to eat
  7. present — there
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. kid — child
  11. dip — to sink
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mine — for digging
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. chip — for betting
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. present — a gift
  20. pass — a permit
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. present — the time now

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