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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stick · ground · straw · lean · mouse · scale · bass · chair

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bass — low music
  3. scale — size or range
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. bass — the fish
  6. scale — in music
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. lean — thin
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. ground — crushed
  12. chair — a leader
  13. lean — to bend
  14. ground — a position
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. ground — the earth
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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