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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: bass · march · face · bat · scale · bulb · leaves · spell

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. bulb — for light
  3. spell — letters
  4. scale — in music
  5. bulb — for light
  6. face — part of the head
  7. spell — magic
  8. march — the month
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. spell — a short time
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. face — to confront
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bass — low music
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bass — the fish

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