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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 120 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: field · pop · stock · rush · bass · band · fork · spell

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. spell — letters
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — in a road
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. stock — goods
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. spell — a short time
  12. bass — low music
  13. rush — hurry
  14. stock — shares
  15. pop — music
  16. band — a music group
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. pop — to visit
  19. bass — the fish
  20. spell — magic
  21. pop — soda
  22. band — a ring
  23. field — farmland
  24. band — a rubber band

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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