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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 120 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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. last — finally
  3. bass — low music
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. bear — the animal
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bass — the fish
  9. rash — a series
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. capital — money
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. capital — a city
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. spell — a short time
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. last — to go on
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. last — final
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. spell — magic
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spell — letters
  24. bear — the animal

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