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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. track — a song
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. track — to keep track
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pound — a weight
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — a contest
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. race — the arms race
  15. can — to be able to
  16. can — a tin
  17. plane — a tool
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. land — ground
  20. can — a tin
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. track — a path
  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