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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bulb — for light
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bulb — for light
  10. rest — a break
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bass — the fish
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. land — ground
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bass — low music
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pass — a permit
  21. chest — a box
  22. land — a country
  23. chest — of your body
  24. land — to come down

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