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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. track — a path
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bulb — for light
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. row — a line
  10. scale — size or range
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. track — a song
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bulb — for light
  19. scale — in music
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bass — the fish
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. pitch — completely

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