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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — low music
  3. dip — to sink
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to bend
  6. stock — shares
  7. wound — an injury
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. stock — goods
  10. spring — the season
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. game — a match
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. bass — the fish
  17. spring — of water
  18. game — wild animals
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. spring — a coil
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. lash — to lash out

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