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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: cabinet · mark · chest · stock · pitch · race · tube · deal

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. deal — to handle
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. race — a contest
  6. chest — a box
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. stock — goods
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. tube — the underground
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. race — humankind
  13. tube — a container
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. mark — a grade
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. mark — a trace

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