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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: arm · bass · scale · mug · mate · kick · tear · fall

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. mug — a cup
  3. mug — to rob
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bass — low music
  7. scale — in music
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mate — to breed
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — to rip
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mug — a face
  15. scale — size or range
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. bass — the fish
  23. kick — in football
  24. fall — to drop

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