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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: cell · saw · wake · bass · mate · cabinet · field · wave

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. field — a subject
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mate — a partner
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a friend
  17. field — farmland
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. field — for sport
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bass — low music

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