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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bat · content · bass · last · cap · rest · row · current

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. cap — a lid
  4. current — of water
  5. rest — what's left
  6. current — electric
  7. bat — the animal
  8. row — a line
  9. rest — what's left
  10. content — happy
  11. cap — of ice
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. bass — the fish
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. last — to go on
  16. rest — a break
  17. last — finally
  18. last — final
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bass — low music
  21. current — happening now
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. content — the amount
  24. cap — a hat

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