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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: race · club · chair · bear · band · hand · saw · bass

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. band — a music group
  3. race — the arms race
  4. race — humankind
  5. club — a group
  6. saw — the tool
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. bass — low music
  9. bear — the animal
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. club — for dancing
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. saw — the tool
  14. band — a ring
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bear — the animal
  17. race — a contest
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. chair — a leader
  20. hand — in cards
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. club — for golf
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. hand — help

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