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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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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. bass — low music
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bank — for money
  8. court — of a king
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bank — of a river
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — a leader
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. kid — child
  15. bank — for money
  16. court — for sport
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. wound — an injury
  23. court — of law
  24. chair — to sit on

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