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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. bass — low music
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. chest — a box
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. can — to be able to
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lean — to bend
  12. mine — for digging
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wake — a trail
  16. spring — the season
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. lean — thin
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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