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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: field · bass · straw · ruler · staff · content · plane · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. field — a subject
  3. bass — the fish
  4. field — farmland
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. content — the amount
  7. staff — employees
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. plane — a tool
  10. field — for sport
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. stock — goods
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. staff — a stick
  16. staff — employees
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. content — happy
  21. bass — low music
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. straw — dry grass

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