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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. bass — low music
  16. shower — rain
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — in football
  19. scale — size or range
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. scale — in music
  22. shower — to wash
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. temple — a place of worship

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