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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 120 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: stem · drill · bass · chair · tube · mate · file · stock

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bass — low music
  3. stock — shares
  4. file — a tool
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. mate — to breed
  8. drill — army training
  9. mate — a friend
  10. file — a line of people
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. drill — a practice
  13. stock — goods
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bass — the fish
  16. mate — a partner
  17. file — a document
  18. tube — a container
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. drill — the tool
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. chair — a leader

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