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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. drill — a practice
  3. race — humankind
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. rule — government
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. snap — to click
  8. wax — to grow
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. drill — the tool
  16. rule — a law
  17. bass — the fish
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. race — a contest
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. drill — army training
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — an injury

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