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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chest · rush · bass · pass · face · key

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — the fish
  4. rush — hurry
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. bass — low music
  7. chest — of your body
  8. key — for a lock
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. key — the most important part
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pass — a permit
  15. chest — a box
  16. face — part of the head
  17. key — in music
  18. face — to confront

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