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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: race · saw · last · date · pound · chair · pit · pitch

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. last — to go on
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. date — the fruit
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pit — in a race
  11. last — final
  12. race — the arms race
  13. saw — the tool
  14. race — humankind
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. race — a contest
  18. chair — a leader
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. pound — a weight
  23. pitch — completely
  24. last — finally

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