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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: stock · pound · fine · chest · pitch · race

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. stock — shares
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. race — a contest
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. chest — a box
  14. stock — goods
  15. fine — all right
  16. pound — a weight
  17. fine — high quality
  18. pitch — completely

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