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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 116 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. squash — the sport
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bass — the fish
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. stem — to come from
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — a weight
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. kick — in football
  19. stock — shares
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. squash — to crush
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. straw — dry grass

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