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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. firm — a company
  3. stock — goods
  4. net — after costs
  5. field — farmland
  6. firm — decided
  7. field — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. court — for sport
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. net — for catching
  13. fall — the season
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stock — shares
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. field — a subject
  21. stem — to come from
  22. net — in sport
  23. firm — steady
  24. court — of law

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