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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: capital · net · season · rush · cell · stock · club · mug

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. mug — to rob
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. capital — money
  11. mug — a cup
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. cell — a phone
  15. season — of the year
  16. club — for dancing
  17. season — in sport
  18. net — for catching
  19. stock — goods
  20. mug — a face
  21. capital — a city
  22. cell — in biology
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. stock — shares

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