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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. bass — the fish
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. file — a document
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. file — a tool
  7. spell — a short time
  8. hand — in cards
  9. file — a line of people
  10. rush — hurry
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a match
  13. spell — magic
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. craft — a skill
  16. snap — to click
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. hand — help
  20. craft — boats
  21. bass — low music
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. spell — letters

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