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

Word bank: bank · mark · game · pit · court · stock · ground · field

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. court — of law
  3. mark — a trace
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. mark — a grade
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. game — a match
  8. pit — in a race
  9. stock — goods
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. bank — of a river
  12. bank — for money
  13. field — a subject
  14. bank — for money
  15. pit — a hole
  16. ground — crushed
  17. court — of a king
  18. court — for sport
  19. game — wild animals
  20. field — for sport
  21. stock — shares
  22. ground — the earth
  23. field — farmland
  24. ground — a position

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