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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pitch — completely
  5. mine — for digging
  6. stock — shares
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. face — part of the head
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. rule — government
  11. game — wild animals
  12. face — to confront
  13. game — a match
  14. rule — a law
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. stock — goods
  18. face — to point toward
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. swing — music
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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