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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: firm · spring · date · dip · bass · wake · chair · tear

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. firm — decided
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. spring — of water
  8. firm — steady
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. tear — to rip
  14. chair — a leader
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. tear — from crying
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bass — low music
  21. spring — the season
  22. spring — a coil
  23. firm — a company
  24. wake — a trail

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