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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: stock · land · band · racket · stem · charge · board · bass

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  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. board — a committee
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. charge — electricity
  5. bass — the fish
  6. band — a music group
  7. land — ground
  8. stock — shares
  9. charge — in control
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — to come from
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. band — a ring
  15. stock — goods
  16. land — to come down
  17. charge — a price
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — low music
  20. board — to get on
  21. land — a country
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. band — a rubber band

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