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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. staff — employees
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. current — of water
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bass — low music
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. pound — a weight
  12. wound — an injury
  13. current — electric
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bass — the fish
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. vault — a safe
  20. rock — a stone
  21. staff — employees
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. staff — a stick
  24. current — happening now

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