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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: firm · bark · date · field · bass · chest · stand · staff

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. staff — employees
  3. chest — of your body
  4. field — a subject
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. field — for sport
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. date — the fruit
  9. bark — to shout
  10. field — farmland
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. bass — low music
  14. firm — decided
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. staff — employees
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bass — the fish
  19. chest — a box
  20. firm — steady
  21. chest — of your body
  22. staff — a stick
  23. stand — to bear
  24. firm — a company

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