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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bear — the animal
  6. rest — a break
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rest — what's left
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. chest — a box
  12. bear — the animal
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bass — low music
  17. perch — the fish
  18. chest — of your body
  19. prune — to trim
  20. chest — of your body
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. pound — for dogs

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