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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bass — the fish
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. object — a thing
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. tear — from crying
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. tear — from crying
  11. object — to protest
  12. tear — to rip
  13. toast — bread
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. rash — hasty
  16. object — an aim
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. drill — army training
  19. drill — the tool
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. rash — a series
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. drill — a practice

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