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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: march · dip · bass · foot · rash · rush · pop · spell

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — hurry
  6. spell — magic
  7. pop — music
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. spell — letters
  11. pop — to visit
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. march — music
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — a measure
  18. march — the month
  19. dip — to sink
  20. rash — hasty
  21. pop — soda
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the fish

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