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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: bat · pop · pitch · stock · degree · branch · swing · craft

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. branch — a division
  3. pop — music
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. stock — goods
  6. swing — music
  7. pop — soda
  8. bat — the animal
  9. craft — boats
  10. pitch — completely
  11. craft — a skill
  12. stock — shares
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. swing — to play on
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. swing — in golf
  21. pop — to visit
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. degree — an amount
  24. craft — a handicraft

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