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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 116 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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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: band · chair · wound · pound · bass · face · bear · shower

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. band — a music group
  3. bear — the animal
  4. shower — rain
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bass — low music
  9. pound — a weight
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wound — an injury
  13. shower — to wash
  14. face — to confront
  15. chair — a leader
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. face — to point toward
  24. band — a ring

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