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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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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: wind · bass · foot · track · land · kid · present · cue

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — child
  4. cue — a hint
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bass — the fish
  7. wind — moving air
  8. land — ground
  9. land — a country
  10. track — a path
  11. cue — a signal
  12. track — a song
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. bass — low music
  15. present — a gift
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. track — to keep track
  18. present — the time now
  19. foot — a measure
  20. present — there
  21. kid — to tease
  22. land — to come down
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. wind — moving air

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