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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · race · key · pitch · swing · sharp · charge · bat

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. key — in music
  8. pitch — completely
  9. charge — electricity
  10. swing — music
  11. charge — in control
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. sharp — clever
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. race — a contest
  16. bat — the animal
  17. swing — to play on
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. charge — a price
  20. key — the most important part
  21. race — humankind
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — hasty
  24. race — the arms race

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