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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: hide · swing · wave · degree · bass · mine · bark · race

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. bass — the fish
  3. degree — from a university
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. race — a contest
  6. degree — temperature
  7. race — the arms race
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bark — to shout
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. bass — low music
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — music
  17. race — humankind
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — for digging
  24. degree — an amount

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