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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: tear · spring · scale · mug · straw · bass · lie · ruler

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. lie — to recline
  3. scale — in music
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a cup
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. spring — a coil
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. mug — a face
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. scale — size or range
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bass — the fish
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. tear — from crying
  24. straw — a straw man

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