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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. toast — bread
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. last — finally
  7. land — to come down
  8. scale — in music
  9. tube — a container
  10. kick — in football
  11. land — ground
  12. bass — the fish
  13. tube — the underground
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. stock — shares
  16. scale — size or range
  17. stock — goods
  18. land — a country
  19. bass — low music
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. last — final
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. last — to go on
  24. scale — for weighing

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