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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 116 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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. swing — in golf
  4. bass — the fish
  5. swing — music
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. swing — to play on
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. firm — a company
  13. firm — steady
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cell — a phone
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. firm — decided
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. cell — in biology
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wax — in the ear

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