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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. squash — the sport
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. rest — a break
  6. chest — a box
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rest — what's left
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bass — the fish
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. chest — of your body
  24. nail — for a hammer

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