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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — for betting
  5. scale — in music
  6. rash — a series
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. scale — size or range
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bass — low music
  12. season — of the year
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bass — the fish
  15. season — in sport
  16. rash — hasty
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. spring — of water
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. wound — an injury
  24. spring — the season

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