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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: swing · net · bass · bulb · ground · stock · race · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. ground — the earth
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. ground — crushed
  5. net — in sport
  6. stock — shares
  7. swing — to play on
  8. stock — goods
  9. race — the arms race
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bass — low music
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. race — a contest
  16. bass — the fish
  17. net — for catching
  18. race — humankind
  19. swing — in golf
  20. ground — a position
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. swing — music
  23. bulb — for light
  24. net — after costs

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