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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: roll · bass · shower · staff · rule · club · nail · chest

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. bass — the fish
  4. staff — employees
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. shower — rain
  8. chest — of your body
  9. staff — employees
  10. rule — government
  11. club — for golf
  12. roll — a cake
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. rule — a law
  15. chest — a box
  16. club — a group
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. shower — to wash
  19. staff — a stick
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. roll — a list
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. bass — low music
  24. chest — of your body

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