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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.

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: stock · scale · cell · rash · leaves · pitch · drill · date

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pitch — completely
  5. cell — a phone
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. scale — in music
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. stock — goods
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. drill — a practice
  15. date — the fruit
  16. cell — in biology
  17. rash — a series
  18. scale — size or range
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. rash — hasty

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