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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: stock · tube · band · stick · court · bass · rule · cell

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bass — the fish
  4. stock — shares
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — a phone
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tube — the underground
  10. rule — a law
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bass — low music
  13. court — of a king
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rule — government
  17. court — of law
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. court — for sport
  22. tube — a container
  23. stock — goods
  24. stock — a soup base

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