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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: mine · cell · bass · cabinet · clip · pound · hide · ball

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. bass — the fish
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. bass — low music
  15. pound — a weight
  16. ball — a dance
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. clip — a video
  20. cell — in biology
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — to cut
  24. ball — a great time

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