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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. spell — magic
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bass — low music
  6. lie — to recline
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — a short time
  9. lean — to bend
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. stock — goods
  14. mine — for digging
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — thin
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. date — the fruit
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. bass — the fish

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