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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. pop — music
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. ball — a dance
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. bark — to shout
  8. pop — soda
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. band — a music group
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rash — hasty
  14. ball — a great time
  15. rash — a series
  16. pop — to visit
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bass — low music
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. wind — moving air
  21. band — a ring
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  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