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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: game · pitch · ball · craft · squash · perch · deal · race

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. squash — the sport
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. race — a contest
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. perch — the fish
  11. deal — to handle
  12. craft — boats
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. squash — to crush
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. race — the arms race
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. ball — a dance
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. race — humankind
  21. ball — a great time
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. craft — a skill

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