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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. march — the month
  4. date — the fruit
  5. bass — the fish
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — low music
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. march — the month
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. stock — goods
  17. kick — in football
  18. stock — shares
  19. pitch — completely
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cap — a hat
  22. march — music
  23. cap — of ice
  24. pitcher — a jug

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