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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 · swing · cold · wax · stick · craft · stock · roll

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. 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. swing — music
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. wax — to grow
  4. craft — boats
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — an illness
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. roll — a cake
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. stock — goods
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. roll — a list
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. craft — a skill
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. 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