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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 120 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: bowl · leaves · court · stock · net · foot · content · fork

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. court — of law
  3. stock — goods
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. content — the amount
  7. fork — in a road
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. foot — a measure
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. court — of a king
  13. stock — shares
  14. net — in sport
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. net — after costs
  22. court — for sport
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. net — for catching

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