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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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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: wave · wax · bass · cold · pit · arm · bat · pound

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. pound — a weight
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. pit — in a race
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bass — low music
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pit — a hole
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. cold — an illness

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