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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. staff — a stick
  3. spell — a short time
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. wind — moving air
  8. staff — employees
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. band — a music group
  11. spell — letters
  12. wind — moving air
  13. staff — employees
  14. spell — magic
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. band — a ring
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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