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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bass — the fish
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. march — the month
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. staff — employees
  8. hand — in cards
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. march — the month
  11. rush — hurry
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. deal — to handle
  15. bass — low music
  16. sharp — clever
  17. march — music
  18. hand — help
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. land — a country
  21. staff — employees
  22. land — ground
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. staff — a stick

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