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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. pop — to visit
  5. wound — an injury
  6. root — the cause
  7. root — of a word
  8. pop — music
  9. root — of a plant
  10. wound — an injury
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bass — the fish
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pop — soda
  22. chair — a leader
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. straw — a straw man

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