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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. track — a song
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. ground — a position
  8. pass — a permit
  9. bass — low music
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — a series
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. branch — a division
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. rash — hasty
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bass — the fish
  21. ground — the earth
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. wax — to grow
  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