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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 120 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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 — low music
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. lie — to recline
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. track — a path
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bark — to shout
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. file — a document
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. spell — magic
  16. file — a tool
  17. track — to keep track
  18. track — a song
  19. file — a line of people
  20. dip — to sink
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. spell — letters
  23. bark — of a tree
  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