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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. stock — shares
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. ball — a great time
  8. spring — a coil
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. ball — a dance
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — the season
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. pitch — completely

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