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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. face — part of the head
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bass — the fish
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. kid — to tease
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bass — low music
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. ground — crushed
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wound — an injury
  17. face — to confront
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ground — a position
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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