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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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. lean — thin
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bass — low music
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. last — finally
  8. row — a line
  9. lean — to bend
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. file — a document
  12. drill — army training
  13. bass — the fish
  14. pit — a hole
  15. file — a line of people
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. row — to paddle
  18. drill — a practice
  19. last — to go on
  20. drill — the tool
  21. file — a tool
  22. pit — in a race
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. last — final

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