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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. staff — a stick
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. bass — the fish
  5. hand — in cards
  6. tube — a container
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. tube — the underground
  9. degree — temperature
  10. game — wild animals
  11. bound — obliged
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. game — a match
  15. staff — employees
  16. degree — an amount
  17. bound — tied together
  18. staff — employees
  19. hand — help
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bound — certain
  23. degree — from a university
  24. stand — to bear

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