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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: fall · staff · wake · pop · bass · shower · kid · prune

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pop — music
  6. kid — child
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. fall — the season
  10. bass — low music
  11. fall — to drop
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bass — the fish
  15. staff — employees
  16. shower — rain
  17. pop — soda
  18. wake — a trail
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. prune — to trim
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. shower — to wash
  24. prune — the fruit

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