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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. mark — a trace
  5. wound — an injury
  6. land — to come down
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. stock — goods
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — music
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. pitch — completely
  13. land — ground
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. land — a country
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. roll — a list
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. mark — a grade
  21. pop — to visit
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. roll — a cake

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