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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: safe · stock · pitch · tear · net · pitcher · court · chip

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. net — after costs
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — of law
  7. net — for catching
  8. court — of a king
  9. tear — from crying
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. stock — shares
  12. pitch — completely
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. court — for sport
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. chip — to eat
  17. net — in sport
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. tear — to rip
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. stock — goods
  24. chip — for betting

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