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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: race · pop · temple · pitch · object · land · chair · kick

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. chair — a leader
  3. race — humankind
  4. object — a thing
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. land — to come down
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. land — a country
  13. race — the arms race
  14. object — an aim
  15. race — a contest
  16. land — ground
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. object — to protest
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. pop — music
  24. pop — soda

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