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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 116 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 ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. bass — low music
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. pound — a weight
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wound — an injury
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. mark — a grade
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wound — an injury
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. mark — a trace
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. band — a music group
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. bass — the fish
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. bass — the instrument

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