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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. pass — a permit
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. field — farmland
  9. chip — for betting
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. rest — a break
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. stock — shares
  15. bass — the fish
  16. stock — goods
  17. content — happy
  18. content — the amount
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — for light
  22. chip — to eat
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pass — to spend time

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