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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. present — a gift
  5. kid — child
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. rock — a stone
  9. present — the time now
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. mine — for digging
  14. kid — to tease
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. bass — the fish
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. scale — in music
  19. bass — low music
  20. lie — to recline
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. scale — for weighing

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