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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: deal · foot · rock · stock · field · spring · charge · band

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. spring — a coil
  3. charge — electricity
  4. stock — shares
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. field — farmland
  7. rock — a stone
  8. charge — in control
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. field — a subject
  11. band — a ring
  12. deal — to handle
  13. band — a music group
  14. foot — a measure
  15. spring — of water
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. spring — the season
  21. charge — a price
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. field — for sport
  24. deal — a big deal

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