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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: bowl · chest · stock · coach · cell · safe · current · pitch

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cell — in biology
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. chest — of your body
  9. stock — goods
  10. cell — a phone
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. stock — shares
  14. current — of water
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. current — happening now
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. chest — of your body
  20. current — electric
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. chest — a box
  24. pitch — completely

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