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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bass — low music
  3. face — to point toward
  4. bass — the fish
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. scale — size or range
  7. mate — a friend
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mate — to breed
  12. kid — child
  13. face — part of the head
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. face — to confront
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. club — for golf
  20. scale — in music
  21. mate — a partner
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. club — a group

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