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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 stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. last — finally
  6. bass — low music
  7. clip — to cut
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pop — music
  10. band — a music group
  11. bass — the fish
  12. clip — a video
  13. fall — the season
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. last — final
  18. pop — to visit
  19. pop — soda
  20. perch — the fish
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. last — to go on
  24. band — a ring

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