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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: hand · bass · lie · bark · stock · prune · bulb · cabinet

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. prune — to trim
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. hand — help
  11. prune — to trim
  12. stock — goods
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. stock — shares
  17. lie — to recline
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bulb — for light
  24. lie — an untruth

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