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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: club · wind · safe · bass · leaves · saw · pop · last

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bass — low music
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — a group
  8. saw — the tool
  9. pop — soda
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. last — finally
  13. club — for golf
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. pop — to visit
  16. last — to go on
  17. bass — the fish
  18. wind — moving air
  19. saw — the tool
  20. last — final
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. pop — music
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. leaves — to go away

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