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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. vault — a safe
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. bear — the animal
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bass — the fish
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — a trail
  20. chair — a leader
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. chair — a professorship

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