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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. wake — a trail
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bore — to drill
  10. capital — a city
  11. pitch — completely
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bass — low music
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bass — the fish
  22. capital — money
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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