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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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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. stand — to bear
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. cell — a phone
  7. bank — for money
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bank — for money
  11. object — an aim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bass — the fish
  16. prune — to trim
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bank — of a river
  22. cell — in biology
  23. object — to protest
  24. object — a thing

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