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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. cap — a lid
  3. tear — from crying
  4. mug — a cup
  5. object — an aim
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mug — to rob
  9. kid — child
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. mug — a face
  12. cap — of ice
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bass — the fish
  15. ball — a great time
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. bass — low music
  18. object — to protest
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. rock — a stone
  21. tear — to rip
  22. object — a thing
  23. ball — a dance
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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