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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bass — the fish
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. pound — a weight
  6. ball — a dance
  7. object — a thing
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bass — low music
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. object — to protest
  14. wound — an injury
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. object — an aim
  19. tube — a container
  20. shower — rain
  21. tube — the underground
  22. ball — a great time
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. straw — a straw man

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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