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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: pitch · track · wound · stock · deal · mine · press · lie

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — a song
  3. mine — for digging
  4. stock — shares
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. track — to keep track
  10. lie — to recline
  11. press — a publisher
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. press — newspapers
  14. stock — goods
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — completely
  17. deal — to handle
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. press — to push
  24. lie — an untruth

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