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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. net — in sport
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. chair — a leader
  7. mate — a friend
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. net — for catching
  10. bark — to shout
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. pitch — completely
  15. mate — a partner
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. net — after costs
  19. stock — shares
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. mate — to breed
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a skill
  24. fork — a garden tool

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