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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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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. game — a match
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. mate — a friend
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bass — the fish
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bass — low music
  12. game — wild animals
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cold — not warm
  15. capital — money
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. suit — to fit
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a partner
  21. suit — clothes
  22. capital — a city
  23. cold — an illness
  24. wound — an injury

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