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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: bear · stock · arm · spell · pitch · spring · field · rash

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. spell — magic
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pitch — completely
  8. stock — shares
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spring — of water
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. spring — the season
  13. field — farmland
  14. rash — hasty
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. stock — goods
  19. field — for sport
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — letters
  24. field — a subject

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