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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 · prune · stand · dip · snap · land · hide · last

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. land — a country
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. land — to come down
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. prune — to trim
  8. land — ground
  9. dip — to sink
  10. stand — to bear
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. snap — to click
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. last — final
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. bass — the fish
  17. prune — to trim
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. bass — low music
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  24. bass — the instrument

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