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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. tube — a container
  5. bound — certain
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bass — low music
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. pound — a weight
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. bound — tied together
  17. mine — for digging
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. tube — the underground
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bound — obliged

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