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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: bass · season · hand · cold · shower · bark · bank · firm

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. season — in sport
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bass — the fish
  5. firm — steady
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. season — of the year
  10. hand — in cards
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. hand — help
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. firm — decided
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bank — for money
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bank — of a river
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bank — for money
  22. bass — low music
  23. firm — a company
  24. cold — not warm

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