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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. stand — to bear
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. spring — the season
  5. rash — a series
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. chair — a leader
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. bank — for money
  12. wax — to grow
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. game — a match
  18. spring — of water
  19. bank — for money
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bass — low music
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bank — of a river
  24. spring — a coil

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