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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · mouse · mine · tear · bass · spell · patient · trunk

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. tear — to rip
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. mine — for digging
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. spell — a short time
  18. tear — from crying
  19. spell — letters
  20. bass — low music
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. chair — a leader
  24. mouse — for a computer

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