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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: bass · stand · stock · nail · march · band · land · season

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. season — of the year
  3. bass — the fish
  4. land — to come down
  5. march — the month
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. stock — shares
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. land — ground
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. band — a ring
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. land — a country
  15. band — a music group
  16. march — music
  17. stand — to bear
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. season — in sport
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. march — the month
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — low music
  24. nail — for a hammer

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