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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. bass — low music
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. saw — the tool
  10. tear — to rip
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. chair — a leader
  15. roll — a list
  16. firm — a company
  17. saw — the tool
  18. firm — steady
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. tear — from crying
  22. roll — a cake
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bass — the fish

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