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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: season · straw · leaves · cell · stick · snap · bass · bark

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bass — the fish
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. cell — in biology
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. bass — low music
  17. bark — to shout
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. season — in sport
  22. cell — a phone
  23. snap — to click
  24. straw — a straw man

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