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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — thin
  6. rock — a stone
  7. spring — a coil
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bass — the fish
  10. roll — a cake
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. roll — a list
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. spring — the season
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. pitch — completely
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. rock — music
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. spring — of water
  24. roll — on a roll

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