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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.

Make a worksheet

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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. rush — hurry
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mine — for digging
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. cell — in biology

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