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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: bat · fall · pit · nail · bass · saw · game · firm

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. firm — a company
  8. fall — the season
  9. bass — the fish
  10. pit — a hole
  11. fall — to drop
  12. saw — the tool
  13. firm — steady
  14. pit — in a race
  15. bass — low music
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. saw — the tool
  18. firm — decided
  19. game — a match
  20. bat — the animal
  21. fall — to drop
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bat — in an idiom

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