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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 116 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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bound — tied together
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. row — to paddle
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bound — obliged
  9. wind — moving air
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. wind — moving air
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bound — certain
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. kick — in football
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bass — low music
  23. saw — the tool
  24. row — a line

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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