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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. lean — thin
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. land — a country
  7. march — the month
  8. rock — a stone
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. bass — the fish
  11. lean — to bend
  12. bound — tied together
  13. land — ground
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. rock — music
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. bound — certain
  19. chest — of your body
  20. land — to come down
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. chest — a box
  23. bound — obliged
  24. deal — to handle

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