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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. spell — a short time
  3. kick — in football
  4. spell — magic
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. spell — letters
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. rest — what's left
  12. hand — help
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. rest — a break
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. rush — hurry
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bass — low music
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rest — what's left
  24. hand — in cards

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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