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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: trunk · court · scale · degree · craft · toast · stock · pitch

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. craft — a skill
  5. court — of a king
  6. pitch — completely
  7. stock — shares
  8. scale — size or range
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. court — of law
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. court — for sport
  16. degree — temperature
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. scale — in music
  19. degree — an amount
  20. degree — from a university
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. toast — bread
  23. stock — goods
  24. scale — for weighing

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