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

Word bank: craft · bank · field · stand · cell · bass · wind · racket

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — low music
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stand — to bear
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. field — farmland
  8. craft — a skill
  9. bank — for money
  10. field — a subject
  11. bank — of a river
  12. cell — in biology
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. field — for sport
  15. cell — a phone
  16. craft — boats
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. bank — for money
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bass — the fish
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. wind — moving air

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