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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: swing · stem · mate · stock · pitch · club

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. club — for dancing
  3. stock — goods
  4. club — for golf
  5. mate — to breed
  6. swing — to play on
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. swing — in golf
  9. club — a group
  10. pitch — completely
  11. swing — music
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mate — a partner
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. stock — shares
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — to come from

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