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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 120 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — low music
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. wound — an injury
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bass — the fish
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — the tool
  13. pop — music
  14. march — music
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. pop — soda
  17. wound — an injury
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. pop — to visit
  23. kick — in football
  24. kick — with a leg

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