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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 120 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: land · chair · squash · rest · key · bass · pop · spring

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. squash — to crush
  3. key — for a lock
  4. spring — the season
  5. chair — a leader
  6. key — in music
  7. spring — of water
  8. pop — to visit
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. pop — soda
  13. bass — the fish
  14. key — the most important part
  15. squash — the sport
  16. rest — what's left
  17. land — ground
  18. bass — low music
  19. rest — a break
  20. rest — what's left
  21. land — a country
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. land — to come down
  24. chair — a professorship

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