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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. mug — to rob
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. fine — high quality
  6. bass — the fish
  7. pop — music
  8. mug — a cup
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mug — a face
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. fine — all right
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pop — to visit
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pop — soda

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