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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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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: clip · pitcher · season · ball · bass · pound · foot · arm

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. clip — for paper
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — in sport
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. season — of the year
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — a video
  14. bass — low music
  15. foot — a measure
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — the fish
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. ball — a great time
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. ball — a dance
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. pitcher — a jug

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