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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: bear · fan · track · wave · content · field · bass · bound

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bound — certain
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. track — a path
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a song
  8. field — a subject
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bass — low music
  13. content — happy
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. content — the amount
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. field — farmland
  18. bound — tied together
  19. field — for sport
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bass — the fish
  24. fan — a supporter

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