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

Word bank: row · bass · firm · prune · mug · hand · staff · cold

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. firm — decided
  3. staff — employees
  4. firm — a company
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bass — the fish
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. hand — in cards
  10. cold — an illness
  11. firm — steady
  12. staff — employees
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bass — low music
  17. mug — a cup
  18. cold — not warm
  19. prune — to trim
  20. staff — a stick
  21. row — a line
  22. row — to paddle
  23. hand — help
  24. mug — a face

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