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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 120 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: band · mine · ground · lash · bass · object · prune · squash

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. band — a music group
  4. ground — crushed
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. mine — for digging
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bass — the fish
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. prune — to trim
  15. object — a thing
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. band — a ring
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. prune — to trim
  21. squash — the sport
  22. object — an aim
  23. bass — low music
  24. squash — to crush

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