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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. ball — a great time
  5. last — finally
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bank — for money
  8. chip — to eat
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. spring — of water
  11. last — final
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. chip — for betting
  15. spring — the season
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the fish
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. spring — a coil
  21. ball — a dance
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bank — for money
  24. last — to go on

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