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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: can · hide · key · mine · perch · pitch · race · bat

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — humankind
  3. mine — for digging
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. perch — the fish
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bat — the animal
  10. can — a tin
  11. key — for a lock
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — in music
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. can — to be able to
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — completely
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. can — a tin
  24. race — the arms race

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