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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: band · stock · row · mark · prune · pitch · chair · race

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. prune — to trim
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mark — a trace
  5. race — a contest
  6. stock — shares
  7. band — a ring
  8. chair — a leader
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. row — to paddle
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. mark — a grade
  14. stock — goods
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pitch — completely
  17. row — a line
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. race — the arms race
  21. band — a music group
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. race — humankind

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