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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. firm — steady
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bass — the fish
  5. bark — to shout
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. chair — a leader
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bass — low music
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a line
  14. toast — bread
  15. firm — a company
  16. rash — hasty
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. rash — a series
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. firm — decided
  24. rash — on the skin

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