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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: straw · chair · stand · racket · game · bass

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bass — the fish
  5. bass — low music
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. game — a match
  12. chair — a leader
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. game — wild animals
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. chair — to sit 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