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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: last · bass · cell · hand · net · root · scale · hide

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. hand — help
  3. scale — in music
  4. last — final
  5. bass — the fish
  6. root — the cause
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. net — after costs
  9. net — in sport
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. cell — a phone
  12. last — to go on
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. last — finally
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hand — in cards
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — of a word
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bass — low music

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