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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. club — for dancing
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. club — for golf
  5. staff — employees
  6. game — a match
  7. fork — in a road
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. staff — employees
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. lie — to recline
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. club — a group
  23. bass — low music
  24. staff — a stick

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