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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: bound · rock · cold · bass · date · spell · pitch · perch

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. spell — magic
  3. pitch — completely
  4. spell — a short time
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bound — certain
  8. date — the fruit
  9. spell — letters
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. perch — the fish
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cold — an illness
  16. rock — music
  17. cold — not warm
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rock — a stone
  21. bass — low music
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bound — tied together

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