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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. fall — the season
  3. chair — a leader
  4. clip — to cut
  5. bass — low music
  6. hand — in cards
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — size or range
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. fall — to drop
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bore — to tire
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. hand — help
  21. bore — to drill
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. scale — in music

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