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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. land — to come down
  3. ground — a position
  4. wound — an injury
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — the fish
  8. land — ground
  9. march — the month
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. ground — the earth
  12. wound — an injury
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. ground — crushed
  16. land — a country
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cell — in biology
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. march — music
  21. bass — low music
  22. march — the month
  23. cell — a phone
  24. coach — a trainer

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