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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. squash — to crush
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. squash — the sport
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bass — low music
  12. club — for golf
  13. clip — to cut
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. clip — a video
  17. cell — a phone
  18. club — for dancing
  19. clip — for paper
  20. club — a group
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. cell — in biology

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