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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bass — low music
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. stock — shares
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. tear — to rip
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bound — certain
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stock — goods
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. mine — for digging
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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