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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: chest · jam · date · fall · wave · bass · kid · chair

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. bass — the fish
  3. chair — a leader
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. chest — a box
  6. fall — to drop
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fall — the season
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. fall — to drop
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. kid — child
  23. date — the fruit
  24. bass — low music

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