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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: band · cold · craft · content · pound · saw · stock · plane

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. cold — an illness
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. content — the amount
  7. plane — a tool
  8. stock — shares
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. saw — the tool
  13. content — happy
  14. pound — a weight
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. stock — goods
  18. saw — the tool
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. craft — boats
  24. craft — a skill

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