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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. bass — low music
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. race — the arms race
  5. prune — to trim
  6. race — humankind
  7. firm — decided
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. fork — in a road
  10. field — for sport
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bear — the animal
  17. race — a contest
  18. prune — to trim
  19. firm — a company
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. bear — the animal
  22. field — farmland
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. field — a subject

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