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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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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. firm — a company
  3. stock — goods
  4. firm — steady
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. field — farmland
  7. firm — decided
  8. pitch — completely
  9. present — a gift
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. present — the time now
  13. cell — in biology
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. cell — a phone
  16. field — a subject
  17. lie — to recline
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. field — for sport
  20. spell — a short time
  21. present — there
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — magic

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