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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: bank · land · pitcher · stand · game · saw · tear · bass

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bank — for money
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bass — low music
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. saw — the tool
  7. game — a match
  8. stand — to bear
  9. land — a country
  10. saw — the tool
  11. land — to come down
  12. tear — to rip
  13. land — ground
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bank — of a river
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. bank — for money
  22. bass — the fish
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stand — on your feet

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