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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mug — a face
  6. chest — of your body
  7. suit — clothes
  8. suit — in cards
  9. bark — to shout
  10. chest — a box
  11. prune — to trim
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mug — a cup
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. dip — to sink
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bass — the fish
  19. mug — to rob
  20. suit — to fit
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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