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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. rock — music
  3. face — part of the head
  4. kid — child
  5. club — for dancing
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bass — low music
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. bass — the fish
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — not warm
  17. face — to confront
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. club — a group
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. club — for golf
  24. fan — a supporter

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