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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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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a hat
  4. field — farmland
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. field — a subject
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. cap — a lid
  10. stock — goods
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. field — for sport
  13. bank — for money
  14. bass — low music
  15. pitch — completely
  16. bank — for money
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bank — of a river

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