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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bass — low music
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. bore — to drill
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — music
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. pop — soda
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bass — the fish
  23. cold — not warm
  24. spell — letters

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