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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: pitcher · bass · band · suit · stand · kid · wind · date

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. kid — to tease
  3. bass — the fish
  4. band — a music group
  5. suit — to fit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. suit — in cards
  8. kid — child
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wind — moving air
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. band — a ring
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — low music
  17. suit — clothes
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. date — the fruit
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stand — to bear

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