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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: object · chip · content · racket · chest · pitch · tear · race

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. object — an aim
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pitch — completely
  6. object — to protest
  7. content — happy
  8. chip — to eat
  9. tear — to rip
  10. race — the arms race
  11. tear — from crying
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. race — a contest
  15. object — a thing
  16. race — humankind
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. chest — of your body
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. content — the amount
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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