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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: fall · calf · perch · wake · pop · bass · rule · cold

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. fall — to drop
  6. perch — the fish
  7. pop — soda
  8. rule — a law
  9. cold — not warm
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cold — an illness
  12. pop — to visit
  13. rule — government
  14. pop — music
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the fish
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wake — a trail
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. calf — of the leg

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