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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bear — the animal
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. bear — the animal
  6. band — a ring
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. vault — a safe
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. row — a line
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. kid — child
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bass — the fish
  24. band — a music group

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