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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: bat · face · stock · lean · pitch · spell · pop · cue

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. spell — a short time
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. face — to confront
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. lean — to bend
  8. spell — letters
  9. stock — goods
  10. spell — magic
  11. pop — music
  12. lean — thin
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — soda
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cue — for pool
  19. stock — shares
  20. face — part of the head
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. bat — the animal
  23. cue — a signal
  24. lean — to rest against

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