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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: wind · sharp · bass · spell · wound · lie · pitcher · safe

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. bass — low music
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wind — moving air
  8. lie — to recline
  9. bass — the fish
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. spell — a short time
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. spell — magic
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. spell — letters
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — exactly

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