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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. tear — from crying
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. chest — of your body
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bass — the fish
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. chest — a box
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bass — low music
  15. chest — of your body
  16. roll — a list
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. tear — from crying
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. pitch — completely

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