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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 124 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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. kick — in football
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bass — low music
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. clip — for paper
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. clip — a video
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. clip — to cut
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. pop — music
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. drill — army training
  21. pop — soda
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. pop — to visit

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