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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: game · hand · object · drill · bass · land · pass · straw

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. drill — a practice
  3. drill — army training
  4. object — an aim
  5. hand — help
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. land — to come down
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — wild animals
  11. hand — in cards
  12. object — to protest
  13. land — a country
  14. drill — the tool
  15. bass — the fish
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. game — a match
  18. land — ground
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. object — a thing
  21. bass — low music
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. pass — a permit

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