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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. land — ground
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — to wash
  6. bass — the fish
  7. land — a country
  8. wind — moving air
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. land — to come down
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mark — a trace
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. snap — to click
  21. fork — in a road
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bass — low music
  24. fork — a garden tool

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