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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 120 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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. clip — to cut
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. bass — the fish
  5. craft — a skill
  6. craft — boats
  7. wound — an injury
  8. clip — for paper
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. rock — music
  11. snap — to click
  12. clip — a video
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bass — low music
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. rock — a stone
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. craft — a handicraft

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