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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. wake — a trail
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. kid — child
  9. cold — an illness
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. net — in sport
  12. current — of water
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. toast — bread
  15. net — for catching
  16. current — electric
  17. cold — not warm
  18. current — happening now
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bass — the fish
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. net — after costs
  23. stand — to bear
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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