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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bank — of a river
  5. fall — the season
  6. bass — the fish
  7. bear — the animal
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. bank — for money
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. field — a subject
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bear — the animal
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. field — farmland
  23. bank — for money
  24. field — for sport

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