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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
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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: squash · pitch · face · race · stock · bore · file · shower

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  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. squash — to crush
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. stock — shares
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. race — humankind
  7. bore — to drill
  8. file — a line of people
  9. squash — the sport
  10. bore — to tire
  11. pitch — completely
  12. file — a document
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. stock — goods
  16. shower — rain
  17. race — the arms race
  18. face — to point toward
  19. shower — to wash
  20. race — a contest
  21. face — to confront
  22. file — a tool
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  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