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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. tube — the underground
  7. ground — the earth
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. net — for catching
  13. ground — a position
  14. fall — to drop
  15. net — in sport
  16. bass — the fish
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. tube — a container
  21. ground — crushed
  22. fall — the season
  23. net — after costs
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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