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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 116 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: craft · band · march · cell · coach · stock · tube · bulb

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. march — music
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. tube — the underground
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bulb — for light
  10. march — the month
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. bulb — for light
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. band — a music group
  15. stock — goods
  16. cell — in biology
  17. tube — a container
  18. march — the month
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. craft — a skill
  22. band — a ring
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. craft — boats

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