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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. net — in sport
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — a cup
  5. track — to keep track
  6. net — after costs
  7. tear — from crying
  8. track — a path
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. tear — to rip
  12. mug — to rob
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. land — to come down
  15. clip — a video
  16. land — ground
  17. land — a country
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. net — for catching
  20. bass — low music
  21. tear — from crying
  22. chair — a leader
  23. track — a song
  24. clip — for paper

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