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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: pit · stock · tear · season · saw · cell · net · pop

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — of the year
  5. cell — in biology
  6. net — for catching
  7. pop — soda
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. net — after costs
  10. stock — goods
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pit — in a race
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. tear — from crying
  15. saw — the tool
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stock — shares
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pop — to visit
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. pop — music
  23. net — in sport
  24. saw — the tool

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