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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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bass — the fish
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. bass — low music
  15. shower — to wash
  16. squash — the sport
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. rush — hurry
  19. squash — to crush
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. swing — in golf
  22. shower — rain
  23. band — a music group
  24. bark — to shout

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