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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: land · file · perch · stock · pitch · tube · ball · stem

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. file — a tool
  3. tube — a container
  4. file — a line of people
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. file — a document
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. land — a country
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. ball — a dance
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. stock — goods
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. tube — the underground
  16. pitch — completely
  17. perch — the fish
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stock — shares
  20. stem — to come from
  21. land — to come down
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. ball — a great time

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