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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: pitcher · clip · spell · stock · bear · rush · field · present

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. present — the time now
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. clip — a video
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. present — a gift
  10. stock — shares
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — for sport
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — magic
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. field — farmland
  22. rush — hurry
  23. present — there
  24. spell — letters

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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