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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: pit · bay · fall · bound · hide · last · bass · clip

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pit — a hole
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bound — certain
  6. clip — to cut
  7. last — final
  8. bass — the fish
  9. fall — the season
  10. bound — tied together
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pit — in a race
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. last — to go on
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. clip — a video
  21. fall — to drop
  22. last — finally
  23. bass — low music
  24. hide — to keep secret

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