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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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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: bass · bat · pop · cap · coach · lean · face · race

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. face — to point toward
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — music
  11. lean — to bend
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. pop — soda
  14. cap — a hat
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — a contest
  19. lean — thin
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bass — the fish
  23. face — to confront
  24. race — humankind

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