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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. object — to protest
  3. spring — a coil
  4. object — a thing
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the fish
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. sharp — clever
  9. fine — all right
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. fine — high quality
  13. pop — music
  14. spring — of water
  15. object — an aim
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pop — to visit
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. pop — soda
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. spring — the season
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. sharp — with an edge

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