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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.

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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: hand · bowl · nail · staff · pass · bass · last · leaves

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. last — to go on
  6. hand — in cards
  7. pass — a permit
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. hand — help
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. last — final
  13. bass — low music
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. staff — employees
  21. bass — the fish
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bowl — a football final

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