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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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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: dip · trunk · straw · field · firm · bass · snap · pit

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pit — in a race
  4. firm — a company
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. field — a subject
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bass — low music
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. dip — to sink
  15. firm — steady
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. snap — to click
  20. firm — decided
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. field — for sport
  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