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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bass — low music
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bound — obliged
  5. band — a music group
  6. bass — the fish
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. saw — the tool
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. band — a ring
  18. bound — tied together
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bound — certain
  21. swing — in golf
  22. swing — music
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. swing — to play 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