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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mine — for digging
  3. band — a ring
  4. band — a music group
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. lie — to recline
  7. stock — goods
  8. net — for catching
  9. bass — the fish
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. net — in sport
  14. stock — shares
  15. bass — low music
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. net — after costs

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