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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.

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: file · march · present · bass · pitch · pop · spring · racket

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. present — a gift
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. file — a document
  5. march — the month
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — completely
  8. march — music
  9. present — there
  10. present — the time now
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bass — low music
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. spring — a coil
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. file — a tool
  19. pop — music
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. spring — of water
  22. march — the month
  23. spring — the season
  24. file — a line of people

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