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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. shower — rain
  5. squash — to crush
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. rash — a series
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. track — a path
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. squash — the sport
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. track — to keep track
  15. shower — to wash
  16. sharp — clever
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bass — the fish
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. track — a song
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bass — low music

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