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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bass — low music
  4. tear — from crying
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. chest — a box
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bass — the fish
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. tear — to rip
  15. spell — magic
  16. fork — in a road
  17. deal — to handle
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. chest — of your body
  21. spell — letters
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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