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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: lie · pitcher · wind · clip · rest · bass · rash · bound

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  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. rest — a break
  2. bound — certain
  3. lie — to recline
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. clip — a video
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. rash — hasty
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. rash — a series
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. bass — the fish
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bound — obliged
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bound — tied together
  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