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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 124 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 get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. rash — a series
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. bass — the fish
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a line
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. rash — hasty
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. sharp — clever
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. pound — a weight
  23. bass — low music
  24. kick — in football

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