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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: season · bark · bass · last · lash · ground · nail · club

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bass — the fish
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. club — for golf
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bark — to shout
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. ground — the earth
  10. last — to go on
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. ground — a position
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. season — in sport
  16. last — final
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. club — a group
  22. season — of the year
  23. club — for dancing
  24. last — finally

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