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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. face — to confront
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. bass — low music
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. branch — a division
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. spring — a coil
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — for sport
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. rock — music
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. field — a subject
  21. face — part of the head
  22. face — to point toward
  23. rush — hurry
  24. branch — of a tree

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