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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. fine — all right
  4. squash — to crush
  5. capital — money
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fine — high quality
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bass — low music
  13. staff — a stick
  14. squash — the sport
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. staff — employees
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. capital — a city
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. staff — employees

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