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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. current — electric
  9. ball — a dance
  10. firm — decided
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. bass — the fish
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. firm — a company
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. current — happening now
  23. current — of water
  24. ball — a great time

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