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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. band — a ring
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. bass — low music
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. band — a music group
  11. squash — the sport
  12. file — a document
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. file — a line of people
  16. deal — to handle
  17. bass — the fish
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. file — a tool
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. pound — a weight
  24. squash — to crush

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