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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: current · bear · bass · jam · bark · last · cold · pitch

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. current — happening now
  4. bear — the animal
  5. last — finally
  6. current — of water
  7. bass — the fish
  8. last — to go on
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. cold — not warm
  12. current — electric
  13. bear — the animal
  14. last — final
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. bark — to shout
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pitch — completely
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. bass — the instrument

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