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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 · game · rest · deal · wave · file · chest · season

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. season — of the year
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. rest — what's left
  5. game — a match
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. file — a tool
  8. rest — a break
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. rest — what's left
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bass — low music
  15. game — wild animals
  16. file — a document
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. bass — the fish
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. chest — of your body
  21. season — in sport
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. deal — to handle
  24. chest — of your body

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