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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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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: pitch · deal · stem · pound · chest · stock · season · degree

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. degree — temperature
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stock — shares
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. deal — to handle
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. season — of the year
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. degree — from a university
  17. pound — a weight
  18. degree — an amount
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. stock — goods

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