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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: squash · bowl · bass · snap · march · clip · calf · rule

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. march — the month
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bass — low music
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bass — the fish
  9. rule — a law
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. march — the month
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. squash — to crush
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. snap — to click
  17. clip — for paper
  18. squash — the sport
  19. rule — government
  20. clip — to cut
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. clip — a video
  23. march — music
  24. rule — to rule out

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