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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 116 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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. march — music
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. last — to go on
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. spell — magic
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bear — the animal
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bear — the animal
  11. march — the month
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — a hint
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bass — low music
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cue — for pool
  20. march — the month
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. spell — letters
  24. rash — a series

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