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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bass — the fish
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — to tease
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. wax — to grow
  8. capital — a city
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bass — low music
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. bore — to tire
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. kid — child
  19. cell — a phone
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. cell — in biology
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. bore — to drill

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