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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. root — of a word
  3. bass — low music
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. race — a contest
  6. squash — to crush
  7. last — final
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bass — the fish
  10. root — the cause
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. last — finally
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. ball — a dance
  15. race — the arms race
  16. race — humankind
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. ball — a great time
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. root — of a plant
  21. wake — a trail
  22. last — to go on
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — animal skin

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