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

Word bank: mug · lash · bass · prune · present · cold

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. present — the time now
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mug — a cup
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. mug — a face
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bass — the fish
  13. present — there
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. mug — to rob
  16. present — a gift
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bass — low music

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