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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: bear · pitcher · foot · land · stock · court · lean · jam

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. lean — thin
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. stock — shares
  7. court — of law
  8. land — to come down
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — goods
  12. bear — the animal
  13. land — a country
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. foot — a measure
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. court — of a king
  20. lean — to bend
  21. court — for sport
  22. land — ground
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. foot — part of the body

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