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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. bass — the fish
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. tear — to rip
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — a short time
  11. tear — from crying
  12. band — a music group
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. snap — to click
  16. wind — moving air
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bass — low music
  19. band — a ring
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. tear — from crying
  22. spell — letters
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. bass — the instrument

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