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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. squash — to crush
  4. sharp — clever
  5. stock — shares
  6. pitch — completely
  7. squash — the sport
  8. race — humankind
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. wax — to grow
  16. stock — goods
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. race — the arms race
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. race — a contest

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