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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. tear — from crying
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. row — to paddle
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pitch — completely
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. bore — to tire
  16. row — a line
  17. cap — a hat
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bass — the fish
  20. drill — the tool
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. drill — army training
  24. tear — to rip

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