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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 124 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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — the fish
  4. cell — in biology
  5. bass — low music
  6. chest — a box
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. chest — of your body
  10. suit — clothes
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fall — the season
  14. wind — moving air
  15. kick — in football
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — in sport
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — to drop
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. suit — in cards
  24. suit — to fit

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