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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. land — ground
  4. bass — low music
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. bass — the fish
  8. clip — for paper
  9. branch — a division
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. bulb — for light
  16. ball — a dance
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bulb — for light
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ball — a great time
  21. land — to come down
  22. dip — to sink
  23. land — a country
  24. clip — a video

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