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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 · bass · pop · wound · snap · cabinet · ground · roll

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bass — low music
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wind — moving air
  9. snap — to click
  10. bass — the fish
  11. pop — music
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pop — soda
  14. roll — a cake
  15. pop — to visit
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. ground — a position
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. roll — a list
  24. ground — crushed

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