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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 had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bass — low music
  6. hand — in cards
  7. prune — to trim
  8. swing — to play on
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. hand — help
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — for digging
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bass — the fish
  18. drill — army training
  19. swing — music
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. swing — in golf

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