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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 · lash · bulb · stick · net · race · court

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. bulb — for light
  3. court — of a king
  4. charge — in control
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. race — a contest
  7. net — after costs
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. court — for sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. court — of law
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. net — in sport
  17. race — the arms race
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. charge — a price
  21. race — humankind
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bulb — for light
  24. pitch — a sports field

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