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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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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: stem · bark · squash · bay · race · pitch · kid · rash

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the sport
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. kid — child
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. rash — hasty
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. race — humankind
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. kid — to tease
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. rash — a series
  23. bark — to shout
  24. stem — to come from

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