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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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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: fork · wind · stock · pitch · press · ground · net · bulb

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stock — shares
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. wind — moving air
  7. net — after costs
  8. net — for catching
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — crushed
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. fork — in a road
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. press — to push
  20. net — in sport
  21. stock — goods
  22. press — a publisher
  23. press — newspapers
  24. fork — a garden tool

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