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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: bass · snap · tear · hand · jam · pop · land · season

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pop — soda
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bass — low music
  6. season — in sport
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. snap — to click
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. pop — to visit
  11. land — ground
  12. tear — from crying
  13. land — to come down
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. season — of the year
  18. pop — music
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. tear — from crying
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. bass — the fish
  24. season — to add flavour

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