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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. scale — size or range
  8. mug — to rob
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. scale — in music
  15. wake — a trail
  16. spring — the season
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. mug — a face
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. bass — the fish
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. mug — a cup

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