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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: hand · fine · pitcher · prune · court · stock · board · mouse

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. court — for sport
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. fine — high quality
  5. stock — goods
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. stock — shares
  10. board — to get on
  11. court — of law
  12. court — of a king
  13. hand — help
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. board — a committee
  17. prune — to trim
  18. hand — in cards
  19. fine — all right
  20. prune — to trim
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. fine — a penalty

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