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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 · bass · fine · straw · wave · mate · board · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. board — a committee
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. mate — a partner
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. mate — to breed
  9. board — to get on
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. chair — a leader
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bat — the animal
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. bass — the fish
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. fine — high quality
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. fine — all right
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bass — low music

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