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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pit · race · bowl · cap · deal · net

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — to handle
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. net — after costs
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. cap — a lid
  9. race — humankind
  10. cap — a hat
  11. pit — a hole
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. race — a contest
  14. net — for catching
  15. race — the arms race
  16. net — in sport
  17. pit — in a race
  18. cap — of ice

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