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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: bass · ground · hand · chair · pound · tube · suit · race

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. suit — clothes
  3. suit — to fit
  4. ground — the earth
  5. pound — a weight
  6. tube — a container
  7. chair — a leader
  8. race — humankind
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bass — low music
  16. hand — help
  17. suit — in cards
  18. race — the arms race
  19. tube — the underground
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. race — a contest
  22. hand — in cards
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ground — a position

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