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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: shower · key · club · firm · cell · land · bass · pop

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. club — a group
  3. cell — in biology
  4. club — for golf
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. firm — a company
  7. key — for a lock
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. bass — the fish
  10. land — a country
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. key — in music
  14. firm — decided
  15. land — to come down
  16. shower — rain
  17. key — the most important part
  18. firm — steady
  19. shower — to wash
  20. club — for dancing
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pop — to visit
  23. land — ground
  24. cell — a phone

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