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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. rash — hasty
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rash — a series
  5. mine — for digging
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to drill
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. wake — a trail
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cap — a hat
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bass — the fish
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. bass — low music

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