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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — a short time
  4. tube — a container
  5. ground — the earth
  6. face — to confront
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. mark — a grade
  10. ground — a position
  11. spell — letters
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bass — the fish
  14. plane — a tool
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. face — part of the head
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. tube — the underground
  21. shower — rain
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. shower — to wash
  24. face — to point toward

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