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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: calf · stock · ground · pitch · date · branch · kid · fall

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. fall — to drop
  5. date — the fruit
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. fall — the season
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. stock — shares
  12. kid — to tease
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. stock — goods
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. branch — a division
  18. fall — to drop
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — a position
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. pitch — completely
  23. kid — child
  24. ground — crushed

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