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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: mine · roll · kid · rock · bulb · firm · row · bass

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. firm — a company
  3. rock — music
  4. mine — for digging
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. bass — low music
  11. rock — a stone
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — for light
  14. kid — child
  15. firm — steady
  16. firm — decided
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. row — to paddle
  20. row — a line
  21. bass — the fish
  22. roll — a list
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. bass — the instrument

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