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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  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. temple — a place of worship
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. fine — high quality
  5. clip — to cut
  6. key — in music
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — for a lock
  9. swing — in golf
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. swing — music
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bass — low music
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. swing — to play on
  17. fine — all right
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. clip — a video
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  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