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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: rash · bass · band · track · chip · prune · straw · field

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bass — low music
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. rash — a series
  6. track — a song
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. band — a music group
  13. chip — for betting
  14. chip — to eat
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. rash — hasty
  17. bass — the fish
  18. prune — to trim
  19. band — a ring
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. track — a path
  23. field — for sport
  24. track — to keep track

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