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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: rock · staff · stand · can · cold · fine · bass · straw

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. staff — employees
  3. stand — to bear
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. fine — all right
  6. fine — high quality
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. can — a tin
  9. cold — an illness
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. cold — not warm
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. can — to be able to
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bass — low music
  16. rock — a stone
  17. can — a tin
  18. staff — employees
  19. rock — music
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. fine — a penalty

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