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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
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: bass · band · squash · field · mine · march · pass · stick

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bass — low music
  3. band — a ring
  4. march — music
  5. band — a music group
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. field — a subject
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. field — farmland
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. march — the month
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. march — the month
  20. squash — the sport
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bass — the fish
  23. field — for sport
  24. squash — to crush

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