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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: bass · spring · roll · press · row · game · straw · rock

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. rock — music
  3. row — to paddle
  4. roll — a list
  5. press — newspapers
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. spring — a coil
  11. bass — the fish
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bass — low music
  14. game — a match
  15. roll — a cake
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. spring — the season
  18. press — a publisher
  19. spring — of water
  20. game — wild animals
  21. rock — a stone
  22. press — to push
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bass — the instrument

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