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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 120 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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. stand — to bear
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. kid — to tease
  6. clip — for paper
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. kid — child
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. bass — the fish
  13. swing — music
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. swing — to play on
  16. clip — a video
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bass — low music
  21. swing — in golf
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. rush — hurry

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