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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: wake · toast · tear · chest · squash · stick · bass · suit

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. suit — clothes
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chest — of your body
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wake — a trail
  7. suit — in cards
  8. squash — to crush
  9. chest — a box
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. squash — the sport
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bass — the fish
  15. suit — to fit
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bass — low music
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. chest — of your body
  23. toast — bread
  24. tear — from crying

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