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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: last · present · bass · mine · wind · chair · scale · mark

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. last — finally
  5. mark — a grade
  6. scale — in music
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. present — the time now
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. chair — a leader
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. mark — a trace
  16. last — to go on
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — low music
  19. last — final
  20. present — there
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. scale — size or range
  23. present — a gift
  24. wind — to turn a key

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