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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spell · charge · staff · content · ground · pitcher · net · stock

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. ground — crushed
  3. spell — a short time
  4. content — happy
  5. charge — a price
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. staff — employees
  8. charge — electricity
  9. content — the amount
  10. spell — magic
  11. stock — shares
  12. stock — goods
  13. staff — a stick
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — in sport
  16. charge — in control
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. ground — the earth
  19. staff — employees
  20. spell — letters
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. ground — a position
  24. net — after costs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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