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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 120 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: foot · hide · game · dip · season · stock · pitcher · clip

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. stock — goods
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. stock — shares
  9. game — a match
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. season — in sport
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. dip — to sink
  14. foot — a measure
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. clip — a video
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. game — wild animals
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. clip — to cut
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. clip — for paper

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