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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: pop · trunk · bass · squash · bound · clip · tear · deal

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. clip — to cut
  3. squash — the sport
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bound — obliged
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pop — music
  9. bound — tied together
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. tear — from crying
  15. clip — for paper
  16. deal — to handle
  17. squash — to crush
  18. pop — soda
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bound — certain
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. clip — a video
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. bass — low music

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