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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: sharp · pitch · court · pitcher · stock · file · kick · cue

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. cue — for pool
  3. sharp — clever
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. pitch — completely
  9. cue — a hint
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. file — a tool
  12. file — a line of people
  13. file — a document
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. court — of law
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. court — for sport
  18. stock — shares
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — in football
  21. stock — goods
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cue — a signal

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