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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 am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. face — to confront
  6. wound — an injury
  7. dip — to sink
  8. clip — a video
  9. wound — an injury
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. march — the month
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. face — to point toward
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. face — part of the head
  18. pitch — completely
  19. bass — the fish
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — to cut

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