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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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Word bank
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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: pitcher · mate · fork · ground · game · stock · prune · bowl

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. ground — the earth
  4. mate — to breed
  5. stock — shares
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. mate — a partner
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fork — in a road
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a match
  17. mate — a friend
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. prune — to trim
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stock — goods

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