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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. file — a tool
  3. bass — the fish
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. file — a document
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bass — low music
  13. file — a line of people
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. mine — for digging
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. deal — to handle
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. arm — part of the body

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