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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ball · bass · track · lash · vault · cold · squash · march

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. squash — to crush
  6. vault — a safe
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. march — the month
  10. ball — a dance
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. ball — a great time
  14. march — music
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a song
  18. march — the month
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. bass — the fish
  22. squash — the sport
  23. track — a path
  24. cold — not warm

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