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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. ball — a great time
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. ball — a dance
  5. kid — to tease
  6. wake — a trail
  7. cell — in biology
  8. row — a line
  9. row — to paddle
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a plant
  13. season — in sport
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. bass — low music
  16. root — of a word
  17. kid — child
  18. bass — the fish
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cell — a phone
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. season — of the year

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