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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. rule — government
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. ball — a great time
  8. rule — a law
  9. bass — low music
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — music
  12. bass — the fish
  13. row — to paddle
  14. current — of water
  15. swing — to play on
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. ball — a dance
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. wake — a trail
  21. current — electric
  22. row — a line
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. current — happening now

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