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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. track — a song
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. track — to keep track
  9. bass — low music
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. cell — in biology
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. cell — a phone
  14. ground — a position
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. branch — a division
  17. track — a path
  18. bass — the fish
  19. sharp — clever
  20. ground — the earth
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. snap — to click
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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