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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 · stock · wind · bass · content · toast · cell · march

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. toast — bread
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bass — low music
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. content — the amount
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. march — music
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. stock — goods
  15. wind — moving air
  16. content — happy
  17. date — the fruit
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bass — the fish
  20. stock — shares
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bass — the instrument

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