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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. bass — the fish
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. spring — of water
  5. fork — in a road
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. wax — to grow
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spring — the season
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. swing — music
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. swing — to play on
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bass — low music
  19. bat — the animal
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. spring — a coil
  22. rush — hurry
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bat — for baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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