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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: field · rush · cell · hide · stock · pitch · net · stand

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. cell — a phone
  4. stock — goods
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. net — in sport
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. rush — hurry
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — after costs
  12. stock — shares
  13. stand — to bear
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — for sport
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. cell — in biology
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. field — a subject
  24. rush — a thrill

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