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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: pit · land · field · last · bass · court · mouse · current

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of law
  6. field — for sport
  7. bass — low music
  8. land — to come down
  9. court — of a king
  10. pit — in a race
  11. field — farmland
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. field — a subject
  15. pit — a hole
  16. current — happening now
  17. last — finally
  18. land — ground
  19. current — of water
  20. last — to go on
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. last — final
  23. bass — the fish
  24. land — a country

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