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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. net — in sport
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. mark — a trace
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bound — obliged
  9. rest — what's left
  10. face — to confront
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pound — a weight
  13. rest — a break
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bass — the fish
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. net — for catching
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bound — tied together
  20. net — after costs
  21. face — to point toward
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bound — certain
  24. mark — a grade

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