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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: date · bowl · capital · pitcher · stick · racket · stock · mine

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  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. bowl — a dish
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. date — the fruit
  8. mine — for digging
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. stock — shares
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. capital — money
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  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