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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. ground — a position
  3. can — to be able to
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. tear — to rip
  6. drill — a practice
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fine — all right
  9. tear — from crying
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bass — the fish
  15. tear — from crying
  16. branch — a division
  17. drill — the tool
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. drill — army training
  22. ground — the earth
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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