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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: stock · pop · net · content · mug · bay · cell · field

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. net — for catching
  4. stock — shares
  5. pop — music
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pop — to visit
  8. field — a subject
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — to rob
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. cell — in biology
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. pop — soda
  19. content — happy
  20. field — farmland
  21. mug — a face
  22. stock — goods
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. field — for sport

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