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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.

Make a worksheet

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: pitch · stock · sharp · mine · mate · perch · temple · content

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. mate — to breed
  6. stock — shares
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. stock — goods
  12. content — happy
  13. sharp — clever
  14. perch — the fish
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. mate — a partner
  23. content — the amount
  24. mate — a friend

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