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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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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: club · rest · swing · temple · leaves · bass · pop · clip

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bass — low music
  3. clip — to cut
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. club — a group
  7. rest — what's left
  8. clip — a video
  9. pop — music
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. swing — to play on
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. club — for golf
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. swing — in golf
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. club — for dancing
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bass — the fish
  22. clip — for paper
  23. swing — music
  24. rest — what's left

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