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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. charge — electricity
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. charge — a price
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. spring — of water
  14. charge — in control
  15. deal — to handle
  16. bass — the fish
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. spring — a coil
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. spring — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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