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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. hand — in cards
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. rule — a law
  5. bass — the fish
  6. firm — steady
  7. file — a line of people
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — a coil
  13. fall — to drop
  14. plane — a tool
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. firm — decided
  17. bass — low music
  18. firm — a company
  19. file — a tool
  20. hand — help
  21. file — a document
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  24. spring — of water

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