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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. field — a subject
  5. stand — to bear
  6. field — for sport
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. can — a tin
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. can — to be able to
  13. track — to keep track
  14. field — farmland
  15. stock — shares
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. track — a path
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. can — a tin
  21. wind — moving air
  22. track — a song
  23. stock — goods
  24. prune — the fruit

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