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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. cue — a hint
  4. mark — a trace
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bass — the fish
  8. craft — a skill
  9. chest — of your body
  10. craft — boats
  11. degree — an amount
  12. cue — for pool
  13. degree — from a university
  14. chest — a box
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bass — low music
  19. cue — a signal
  20. hand — in cards
  21. mark — a grade
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. mark — to pay attention

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