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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 120 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: game · staff · pound · bass · court · hide · rock · wound

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rock — a stone
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. rock — music
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. game — wild animals
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — of law
  11. staff — employees
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. staff — employees
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bass — low music
  19. game — a match
  20. staff — a stick
  21. bass — the fish
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — a weight

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