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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bass — low music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. bass — the fish
  6. stock — goods
  7. capital — money
  8. tear — to rip
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. capital — a city
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. stock — shares
  24. sharp — clever

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