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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 116 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. hand — in cards
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bass — the fish
  5. pass — a permit
  6. charge — a price
  7. charge — electricity
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. ball — a great time
  12. hand — help
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. ball — a dance
  15. fork — in a road
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. charge — in control
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pass — to succeed

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