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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: fan · leaves · fine · mine · bowl · ground · bass · clip

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. bass — low music
  3. clip — to cut
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. clip — a video
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. ground — the earth
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. bass — the fish
  15. ground — crushed
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. fine — all right
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. ground — a position

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