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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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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. field — farmland
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. lean — to bend
  5. bass — the fish
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bound — certain
  8. field — a subject
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bound — tied together
  12. lean — thin
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cell — a phone
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. bass — low music
  18. bound — obliged
  19. cell — in biology
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — hasty
  22. field — for sport
  23. deal — to handle
  24. kid — child

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