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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. wound — an injury
  3. firm — a company
  4. branch — a division
  5. pitch — completely
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. firm — decided
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stock — goods
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. mine — for digging
  13. race — humankind
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. race — the arms race
  20. stock — shares
  21. firm — steady
  22. race — a contest
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. wound — an injury

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