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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: stock · pitch · cell · leaves · club · field · race · jam

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. club — for golf
  3. field — a subject
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. club — for dancing
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. field — for sport
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. race — humankind
  10. race — the arms race
  11. cell — a phone
  12. pitch — completely
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. race — a contest
  15. field — farmland
  16. stock — goods
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. club — a group
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. cell — in biology
  23. leaves — lets stay
  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