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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: bass · trunk · prune · content · wake · club · land · kid

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — the fish
  3. club — a group
  4. land — to come down
  5. prune — to trim
  6. land — a country
  7. content — happy
  8. wake — a trail
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. club — for dancing
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. kid — child
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. prune — to trim
  17. land — ground
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. club — for golf
  21. content — the amount
  22. bass — low music
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. wake — before a funeral

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