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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 120 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: bass · rash · sharp · chair · lean · kid · ball · face

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  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. chair — a leader
  3. lean — thin
  4. face — to confront
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. face — to point toward
  7. lean — to bend
  8. rash — hasty
  9. ball — a great time
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. kid — child
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. face — part of the head
  16. ball — a dance
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. sharp — clever
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. rash — a series
  22. kid — to tease
  23. ball — a round shape
  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