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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: date · content · ruler · band · field · leaves · land · stand

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. field — a subject
  3. band — a music group
  4. land — a country
  5. date — the fruit
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. stand — to bear
  9. band — a ring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. field — farmland
  15. land — to come down
  16. content — happy
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. land — ground
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. field — for sport
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — the amount

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