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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. fall — the season
  3. pop — soda
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. fall — to drop
  6. deal — to handle
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bass — low music
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pop — to visit
  11. row — to paddle
  12. spell — magic
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. spell — letters
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. snap — to click
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. game — a match
  19. row — a line
  20. bass — the fish
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. pop — music
  24. fall — to drop

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