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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: fan · arm · stock · pitch · land · date · tube · pop

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pop — soda
  9. land — to come down
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. land — ground
  13. date — the fruit
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. stock — shares
  17. tube — a container
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. tube — the underground
  20. land — a country
  21. stock — goods
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — to visit
  24. arm — a part of something

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