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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. toast — bread
  4. rock — music
  5. sharp — clever
  6. rash — hasty
  7. pop — to visit
  8. scale — size or range
  9. rock — a stone
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. pop — soda
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. pop — music
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. scale — in music
  23. foot — a measure
  24. toast — the most admired

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