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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: cold · charge · bear · wave · pitch · roll · game · bass

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bass — low music
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. roll — a list
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. charge — a price
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bass — the fish
  11. roll — a cake
  12. game — a match
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. cold — an illness
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. game — wild animals
  17. charge — in control
  18. cold — not warm
  19. pitch — completely
  20. charge — electricity
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. cold — the Cold War

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