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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: field · lie · pit · bat · squash · race · sharp · pitch

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. pitch — completely
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — for sport
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. race — the arms race
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. race — a contest
  11. pit — a hole
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. squash — to crush
  16. race — humankind
  17. field — farmland
  18. squash — the sport
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. sharp — clever
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. pit — in a race
  24. sharp — exactly

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