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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: present · row · rush · bass · swing · wound · mine · straw

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. present — the time now
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. present — a gift
  11. row — to paddle
  12. swing — in golf
  13. row — a line
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. present — there
  22. swing — music
  23. bass — the fish
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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