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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: bear · bore · wave · cell · bass · kid · club · roll

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — a group
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bass — the fish
  10. cell — in biology
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. roll — a cake
  13. bore — to drill
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. club — for dancing
  16. bear — the animal
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. roll — a list
  19. kid — child
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bass — low music
  22. bear — the animal
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. cell — a phone

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