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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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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: snap · bat · club · pitch · stand · bass · race · can

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. pitch — completely
  3. club — for golf
  4. can — a tin
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. race — the arms race
  7. club — for dancing
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. can — a tin
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. snap — to click
  14. bass — low music
  15. race — a contest
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. club — a group
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. bass — the fish
  23. race — humankind
  24. stand — on your feet

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