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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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468
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: last · bass · pop · snap · swing · rock · stick · stock

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. bass — low music
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. pop — soda
  6. swing — music
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. snap — to click
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. last — to go on
  12. pop — to visit
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. swing — to play on
  15. last — final
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. swing — in golf
  20. last — finally
  21. pop — music
  22. bass — the fish
  23. rock — a stone
  24. stock — shares

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