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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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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wound — an injury
  4. race — humankind
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. race — a contest
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. vault — a safe
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. wound — an injury
  12. can — a tin
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. can — a tin
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. race — the arms race
  19. can — to be able to
  20. stock — shares
  21. capital — money
  22. stock — goods
  23. capital — a city
  24. bat — the animal

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