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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: pit · race · net · game · prune · swing · key · charge

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. race — a contest
  3. net — in sport
  4. prune — to trim
  5. game — wild animals
  6. key — for a lock
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. net — for catching
  9. prune — to trim
  10. race — humankind
  11. swing — in golf
  12. race — the arms race
  13. charge — electricity
  14. net — after costs
  15. game — a match
  16. key — the most important part
  17. swing — to play on
  18. charge — in control
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. charge — a price
  21. swing — music
  22. key — in music
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. pit — in a 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