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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: stock · hand · rash · swing · field · net · pass · staff

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. field — farmland
  3. rash — a series
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. field — a subject
  7. hand — in cards
  8. staff — employees
  9. rash — hasty
  10. pass — a permit
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. field — for sport
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. net — after costs
  19. hand — help
  20. staff — employees
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — shares
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — in sport

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