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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. stock — shares
  5. rash — a series
  6. bass — low music
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. ground — a position
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. rash — hasty
  11. season — of the year
  12. ground — the earth
  13. vault — a safe
  14. net — after costs
  15. stock — goods
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. ground — crushed
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bass — the fish
  24. season — in sport

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