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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wound — an injury
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. bass — the fish
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — for digging
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. toast — bread
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. chair — a leader
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. bass — low music
  21. dip — to sink
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. wound — an injury

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