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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: bay · stock · pit · bear · drill · pound · pitcher · hand

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bear — the animal
  4. stock — shares
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pit — a hole
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. drill — the tool
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. hand — in cards
  13. stock — goods
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. hand — help
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. drill — army training
  23. bear — the animal
  24. pound — for dogs

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