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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.

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: chest · clip · capital · pass · mine · land · bass · wave

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. pass — a permit
  4. clip — a video
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. land — ground
  8. land — a country
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chest — of your body
  12. capital — money
  13. chest — a box
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. capital — a city
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mine — for digging
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. land — to come down
  24. bass — the fish

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