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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
468
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: straw · pound · pitch · stock · bear · mine · wax · fine

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. fine — high quality
  5. mine — for digging
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stock — shares
  10. pitch — completely
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stock — goods
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wax — to grow
  15. fine — all right
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. bear — the animal
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. pitch — a sports field

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