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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: squash · stock · tear · field · net · foot · root · pitcher

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. net — for catching
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. net — in sport
  7. stock — goods
  8. tear — from crying
  9. root — of a plant
  10. field — farmland
  11. root — the cause
  12. stock — shares
  13. foot — a measure
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. field — a subject
  16. squash — to crush
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. squash — the sport
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. net — after costs
  21. tear — to rip
  22. root — of a word
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. field — for sport

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