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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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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: stand · chair · present · bound · straw · game · mine · bass

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. present — a gift
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bass — low music
  5. game — wild animals
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. present — there
  8. bound — certain
  9. bass — the fish
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. chair — a leader
  15. present — the time now
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. mine — for digging
  18. game — a match
  19. bound — obliged
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. stand — to bear
  24. bound — tied together

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