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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 116 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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bass — low music
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. march — the month
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. sharp — clever
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bass — the fish
  16. file — a document
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. march — music
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. lie — to recline
  21. pound — a weight
  22. rash — hasty
  23. march — the month
  24. file — a tool

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