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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: wave · fall · racket · court · last · bass · chest · firm

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. firm — a company
  4. last — finally
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — of law
  7. bass — low music
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. last — final
  11. fall — the season
  12. firm — decided
  13. chest — of your body
  14. court — for sport
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bass — the fish
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. firm — steady
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. last — to go on
  24. racket — for tennis

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