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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bass · drill · chair · track · leaves · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. track — a song
  4. drill — army training
  5. bass — the fish
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bass — low music
  12. drill — a practice
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. chair — a leader
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. drill — the tool
  18. mine — belonging to me

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