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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. tear — from crying
  3. sharp — clever
  4. pit — a hole
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. stock — goods
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. bear — the animal
  11. tear — to rip
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bass — low music
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. pit — in a race
  16. bear — the animal
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. stock — shares
  19. tear — from crying
  20. spell — magic
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — a short time
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bass — the fish

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