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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: rash · game · pitch · stock · nail · pitcher · sharp · tube

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. tube — the underground
  3. rash — a series
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. game — a match
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. tube — a container
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. game — wild animals
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. sharp — clever
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitcher — a jug

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