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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. fall — the season
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. ground — crushed
  7. row — a line
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. shower — to wash
  12. ground — the earth
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. roll — a list
  17. fall — to drop
  18. roll — a cake
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bass — the fish
  21. shower — rain
  22. ground — a position
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. safe — out of danger

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