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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: pit · fine · wave · bear · bass · bat · swing · wound

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bass — the fish
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. bass — low music
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. swing — music
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. swing — to play on
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. pit — in a race
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. fine — all right

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