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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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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: saw · rush · cue · bat · bass · ground · snap · rash

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. ground — crushed
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rush — hurry
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. snap — to click
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. cue — a signal
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. bat — the animal
  16. ground — a position
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. bass — low music
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — hasty
  23. ground — the earth
  24. cue — a hint

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