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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: race · tube · pitch · date · squash · pop · track · craft

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. track — to keep track
  3. race — the arms race
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. craft — boats
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — completely
  8. craft — a skill
  9. pop — music
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. race — a contest
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pop — to visit
  15. squash — the sport
  16. date — the fruit
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. pop — soda
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. track — a path
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. race — humankind
  23. track — a song
  24. tube — the underground

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