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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. pop — soda
  7. march — the month
  8. pop — music
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rule — government
  11. pitch — completely
  12. bass — low music
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. chip — to eat
  15. chip — for betting
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rule — a law
  18. march — music
  19. bass — the fish
  20. cell — a phone
  21. march — the month
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. straw — a straw man

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