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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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Word bank
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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: pitch · charge · race · kid · stock · mate

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. pitch — completely
  3. kid — to tease
  4. charge — a price
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. mate — to breed
  7. race — humankind
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. mate — a partner
  11. charge — in control
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. stock — goods
  15. kid — child
  16. charge — electricity
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. stock — shares

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