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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: pop · bay · last · bass · toast · cold · stem · season

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. 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. last — final
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. last — finally
  5. season — of the year
  6. cold — not warm
  7. last — to go on
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. season — in sport
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. cold — an illness
  15. pop — music
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — to come from
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. toast — bread
  22. pop — soda
  23. bass — the fish
  24. 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