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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. swing — to play on
  4. land — ground
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. swing — music
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. pop — music
  10. land — to come down
  11. wake — a trail
  12. shower — rain
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. pop — soda
  17. bass — low music
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. land — a country
  20. shower — to wash
  21. pop — to visit
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bass — the fish

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