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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 116 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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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 · stem · safe · field · rest · prune · swing

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. rest — what's left
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — for sport
  6. rest — a break
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. swing — in golf
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. stem — to come from
  12. prune — to trim
  13. field — farmland
  14. rest — what's left
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. band — a ring
  17. prune — to trim
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. bass — the fish
  20. swing — to play on
  21. band — a music group
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. swing — music
  24. bass — low music

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