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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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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: fan · last · band · pass · content · stock · stem · craft

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. pass — a permit
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. craft — boats
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. craft — a skill
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. band — a music group
  9. content — the amount
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stock — goods
  17. content — happy
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. stock — shares
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. last — finally
  24. band — a rubber band

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