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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 120 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: bound · bowl · tear · ground · net · pitch · race · chip

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  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. race — a contest
  2. bound — certain
  3. bound — obliged
  4. chip — to eat
  5. race — the arms race
  6. ground — a position
  7. tear — from crying
  8. net — in sport
  9. race — humankind
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. net — after costs
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bound — tied together
  19. ground — crushed
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. net — for catching
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  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