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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 120 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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. bass — the fish
  3. mate — a friend
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. mate — to breed
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. mate — a partner
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. bass — low music
  11. march — the month
  12. content — happy
  13. content — the amount
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. pass — a permit
  16. hand — help
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. march — music
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. hand — in cards
  21. march — the month
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. saw — the tool

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