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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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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: bear · tear · pitch · sharp · pitcher · rock · race · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. bear — the animal
  3. pitch — completely
  4. race — the arms race
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. rock — a stone
  8. tear — from crying
  9. sharp — clever
  10. race — a contest
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. tear — to rip
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. tear — from crying
  15. present — the time now
  16. race — humankind
  17. present — there
  18. bear — the animal
  19. rock — music
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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