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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: stock · shower · season · deal · bay · scale · club · field

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. field — farmland
  3. stock — goods
  4. shower — to wash
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. stock — shares
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. deal — to handle
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. scale — size or range
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. club — for golf
  14. club — for dancing
  15. shower — rain
  16. season — of the year
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. season — in sport
  20. scale — in music
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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