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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: stem · bass · bat · patient · stand · pop · content · key

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. bass — low music
  3. pop — music
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. stand — to bear
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bass — the fish
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. pop — soda
  11. key — in music
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. content — happy
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. bat — the animal
  16. key — the most important part
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. content — the amount
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stem — to come from

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