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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. kick — in football
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. spring — a coil
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — shares
  8. race — humankind
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. pitch — completely
  11. prune — to trim
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. ball — a great time
  19. ball — a dance
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — the arms race
  24. kick — with a leg

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