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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rest — what's left
  5. bound — certain
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. land — to come down
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bound — obliged
  10. fall — the season
  11. rest — a break
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. land — ground
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. bound — tied together
  17. rock — a stone
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rush — hurry
  20. ball — a great time
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. rest — what's left
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. land — a country

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