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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: bat · stock · cabinet · fan · file · prune · pitch · season

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — the animal
  3. stock — goods
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. pitch — completely
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. file — a line of people
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. file — a tool
  16. season — in sport
  17. prune — to trim
  18. stock — shares
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. season — of the year
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. file — a document

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