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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: bass · pound · leaves · rule · swing · chest · nail · stock

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — low music
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. stock — shares
  8. swing — to play on
  9. rule — a law
  10. swing — music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. chest — of your body
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. swing — in golf
  16. rule — government
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. chest — a box
  21. pound — a weight
  22. stock — goods
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. pound — for dogs

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