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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: mug · stick · bass · deal · spring · rash · march · file

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bass — low music
  5. spring — the season
  6. rash — hasty
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. bass — the fish
  10. deal — to handle
  11. spring — of water
  12. mug — to rob
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. rash — a series
  15. mug — a face
  16. file — a tool
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. spring — a coil
  20. file — a line of people
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. mug — a cup
  24. file — a document

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