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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. season — in sport
  3. pop — music
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. drill — a practice
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bass — the fish
  12. pop — to visit
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. race — the arms race
  15. craft — boats
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — humankind
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. craft — a skill
  21. drill — army training
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — of the year
  24. drill — the tool

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