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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: content · firm · cold · straw · race · pitcher · bass · mug

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. firm — a company
  5. mug — a face
  6. content — happy
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — humankind
  9. bass — the fish
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. mug — a cup
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. race — the arms race
  15. mug — to rob
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. bass — low music
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. content — the amount
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. firm — decided

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