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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: ground · bass · clip · bear · dip · game · bound · stand

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. stand — to bear
  4. clip — for paper
  5. game — a match
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. bear — the animal
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. game — wild animals
  11. ground — a position
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. bound — obliged
  14. ground — crushed
  15. bass — low music
  16. bound — certain
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bound — tied together
  19. clip — a video
  20. bear — the animal
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bass — the fish
  23. dip — to sink
  24. ground — the earth

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