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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 120 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: chest · bear · bass · hand · mouse · march · swing · pass

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. march — the month
  3. chest — a box
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. chest — of your body
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bass — low music
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. hand — help
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. march — the month
  20. pass — a permit
  21. chest — of your body
  22. march — music
  23. swing — to play on
  24. hand — in cards

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