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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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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: dip · pit · patient · land · stock · court · ground · key

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. court — for sport
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. land — a country
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. court — of law
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. dip — to sink
  10. land — to come down
  11. ground — crushed
  12. key — the most important part
  13. land — ground
  14. pit — in a race
  15. court — of a king
  16. pit — a hole
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — the earth
  21. key — in music
  22. stock — shares
  23. key — for a lock
  24. stock — a soup base

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