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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 120 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. spell — magic
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. chest — of your body
  9. row — a line
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. mate — to breed
  12. bulb — for light
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. spell — a short time
  15. row — to paddle
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bass — low music
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. chest — a box
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. mate — a partner
  23. spell — letters
  24. bass — the fish

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