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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bound — certain
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. bass — the fish
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cold — not warm
  11. deal — to handle
  12. last — to go on
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bass — low music
  16. bound — tied together
  17. last — finally
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bound — obliged
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. wake — a trail
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. deal — a big deal

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