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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — of the year
  3. mug — to rob
  4. present — the time now
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rock — a stone
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. season — in sport
  11. dip — to sink
  12. rock — music
  13. mug — a face
  14. bass — the fish
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. present — a gift
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — low music
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. mug — a cup
  24. present — there

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