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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: pit · wind · pitcher · bore · race · bound · racket · stock

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. pit — a hole
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. race — humankind
  9. stock — goods
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. wind — moving air
  12. race — the arms race
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. stock — shares
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bound — obliged
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. pit — in a race
  20. bore — to tire
  21. wind — moving air
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. race — a contest
  24. bore — to drill

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