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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 116 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. cold — not warm
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bass — the fish
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. scale — in music
  8. cue — a signal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mate — a partner
  13. row — a line
  14. scale — size or range
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. row — to paddle
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cue — a hint
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. vault — a safe
  22. mate — to breed
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. cue — for pool

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