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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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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: charge · pitch · track · racket · game · bark · root · race

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a path
  4. race — a contest
  5. charge — in control
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — completely
  8. charge — a price
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. charge — electricity
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bark — to shout
  17. track — a song
  18. root — of a plant
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. root — of a word
  21. race — the arms race
  22. root — the cause
  23. race — humankind
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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