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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bulb — for light
  3. ball — a great time
  4. bulb — for light
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. mate — a partner
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. chest — a box
  14. bass — low music
  15. ball — a dance
  16. spring — of water
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — the season
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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