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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: bear · net · season · stock · field · wound · arm · date

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. net — in sport
  4. season — in sport
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. wound — an injury
  7. season — of the year
  8. net — for catching
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bear — the animal
  11. field — farmland
  12. date — the fruit
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. stock — shares
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. field — a subject
  21. net — after costs
  22. field — for sport
  23. bear — the animal
  24. stock — goods

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