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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: tear · firm · staff · bore · lash · bass · kid · date

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. kid — to tease
  3. staff — employees
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. staff — a stick
  6. firm — decided
  7. tear — from crying
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bass — low music
  10. bore — to tire
  11. firm — steady
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. firm — a company
  20. bore — to drill
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. kid — child
  23. date — the fruit
  24. bass — the fish

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