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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. pitch — completely
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — a trail
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. swing — music
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. swing — in golf
  15. bass — the fish
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bass — low music
  18. kid — child
  19. band — a music group
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. band — a ring
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. swing — to play on

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