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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: firm · wound · mark · season · mine · hand · bay · bass

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. firm — decided
  7. firm — steady
  8. season — in sport
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. season — of the year
  12. hand — help
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — low music
  17. mark — a grade
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. mark — a trace
  22. hand — in cards
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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