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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rock — music
  3. bass — low music
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. object — to protest
  12. spell — a short time
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. object — an aim
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rash — hasty
  19. object — a thing
  20. rash — a series
  21. rock — a stone
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — letters

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