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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 116 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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. bass — low music
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. rash — hasty
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. bore — to tire
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bass — the fish
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — a phone
  16. hand — help
  17. rash — a series
  18. hand — in cards
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. fall — to drop
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. cell — in biology
  23. vault — a safe
  24. bore — to drill

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