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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 116 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: mine · clip · mouse · stick · pitch · capital · squash · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. clip — to cut
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. clip — a video
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. capital — money
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. squash — the sport
  17. clip — for paper
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. pitch — completely
  20. mine — for digging
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. stock — shares
  23. capital — a city
  24. mine — belonging to me

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