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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 120 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: bore · bark · ground · pitch · bowl · face · capital · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bore — to tire
  4. bark — to shout
  5. ground — a position
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. capital — money
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. capital — a city
  16. stock — shares
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. bore — to drill
  19. face — to confront
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pitch — completely

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