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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. race — the arms race
  3. net — after costs
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. press — to push
  7. race — humankind
  8. net — for catching
  9. pitch — completely
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. key — the most important part
  12. press — newspapers
  13. swing — music
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — low music
  17. key — in music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. key — for a lock
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. net — in sport
  23. race — a contest
  24. press — a publisher

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