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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rush · pitch · land · march · club · stock · scale · calf

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. stock — shares
  3. club — a group
  4. land — to come down
  5. club — for golf
  6. march — the month
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. march — the month
  10. land — ground
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pitch — completely
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. club — for dancing
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. land — a country
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. stock — goods
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. march — music

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