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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. board — a committee
  3. mate — to breed
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — to get on
  6. pitch — completely
  7. bass — low music
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. mate — a partner
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. mate — a friend
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bass — the fish
  19. cell — in biology
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cell — a phone
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. wind — moving air
  24. straw — a straw man

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