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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. race — humankind
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mine — for digging
  5. current — happening now
  6. cap — a lid
  7. mug — to rob
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a list
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. current — electric
  17. race — a contest
  18. cap — a hat
  19. mug — a face
  20. roll — a cake
  21. race — the arms race
  22. cap — of ice
  23. mug — a cup
  24. current — of water

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