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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. bass — low music
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. kid — child
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. kid — to tease
  7. mate — a partner
  8. rest — what's left
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. bat — the animal
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. mate — to breed
  15. rest — a break
  16. mate — a friend
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. wound — an injury
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bass — the fish

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