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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: rest · fine · hide · track · bass · ball · mate · last

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. last — final
  3. fine — all right
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. bass — the fish
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. mate — a friend
  9. track — a path
  10. bass — low music
  11. mate — to breed
  12. track — a song
  13. ball — a great time
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. ball — a dance
  16. rest — a break
  17. rest — what's left
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rest — what's left
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. track — to keep track
  23. last — to go on
  24. last — finally

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