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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — a position
  4. row — a line
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. stand — to bear
  10. ground — crushed
  11. row — to paddle
  12. rule — government
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. bass — low music
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. bass — the fish
  18. rule — a law

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