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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: rush · rash · stock · pitch · lean · face · date · race

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rush — hurry
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. stock — goods
  7. lean — thin
  8. race — humankind
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. face — to confront
  11. race — a contest
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pitch — completely
  14. race — the arms race
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. stock — shares
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. rash — a series
  22. date — the fruit
  23. lean — to bend
  24. face — part of the head

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