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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. net — after costs
  3. rock — a stone
  4. club — a group
  5. hand — help
  6. net — in sport
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. rock — music
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. club — for golf
  13. bat — the animal
  14. club — for dancing
  15. net — for catching
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bass — low music
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bass — the fish

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