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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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. can — to be able to
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. craft — boats
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. bass — low music
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. kick — in football
  12. present — there
  13. can — a tin
  14. chest — a box
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bass — the fish
  17. can — a tin
  18. present — the time now
  19. chest — of your body
  20. content — the amount
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. content — happy
  23. wake — a trail
  24. present — a gift

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