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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 116 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: bass · land · bay · file · chair · fall · row · tube

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. tube — the underground
  3. fall — the season
  4. file — a document
  5. tube — a container
  6. land — to come down
  7. file — a tool
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bass — low music
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. row — a line
  12. land — ground
  13. file — a line of people
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. land — a country

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