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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: ground · current · date · hand · bass · pop · track · cell

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. track — a path
  3. date — the fruit
  4. bass — low music
  5. track — a song
  6. ground — crushed
  7. current — happening now
  8. cell — in biology
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. ground — a position
  14. pop — soda
  15. current — electric
  16. track — to keep track
  17. pop — music
  18. current — of water
  19. bass — the fish
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. pop — to visit
  24. bass — the instrument

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