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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. object — a thing
  3. wind — moving air
  4. object — an aim
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bass — the fish
  12. wound — an injury
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. capital — money
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. wind — moving air
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. object — to protest
  24. racket — for tennis

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