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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: court · squash · stand · race · pound · charge · current · pitch

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. charge — a price
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. current — electric
  7. squash — to crush
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. race — humankind
  10. squash — the sport
  11. current — happening now
  12. stand — to bear
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. race — a contest
  15. current — of water
  16. charge — electricity
  17. court — for sport
  18. pitch — completely
  19. court — of a king
  20. charge — in control
  21. court — of law
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. race — the arms 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