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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: rest · pitch · bat · swing · board · race · jam · net

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. board — a committee
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — in sport
  7. swing — to play on
  8. swing — music
  9. race — humankind
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. race — the arms race
  12. rest — a break
  13. pitch — completely
  14. rest — what's left
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. race — a contest
  17. bat — the animal
  18. board — to get on
  19. swing — in golf
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. net — for catching
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. rest — what's left

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