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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — clever
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wake — a trail
  9. rush — hurry
  10. bass — low music
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. season — in sport
  18. bass — the fish
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. season — of the year
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. content — happy
  24. fan — to cool the air

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