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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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468
Word bank
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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. face — to point toward
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pass — a permit
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. tear — to rip
  11. wake — a trail
  12. tear — from crying
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bass — the fish
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. face — part of the head
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. tear — from crying
  22. face — to confront
  23. wound — an injury
  24. pass — to succeed

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