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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — a weight
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. branch — a division
  10. track — to keep track
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. game — a match
  13. fork — in a road
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. stock — goods
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. stock — shares
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. track — a song

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