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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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. pop — soda
  3. spring — of water
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ground — a position
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. spring — the season
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. bass — the fish
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. spring — a coil
  16. ball — a dance
  17. lean — thin
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bass — low music
  20. pop — to visit
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. pop — music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ball — a round shape

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