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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 · pitch · mate · bowl · court · stock · foot · straw

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pitch — completely
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. mate — to breed
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — a subject
  10. foot — a measure
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. court — of a king
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. field — farmland
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. mate — a partner
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. court — for sport
  20. mate — a friend
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. court — of law
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — goods

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