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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 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pit — in a race
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — a hole
  10. present — a gift
  11. fork — in a road
  12. wound — an injury
  13. present — there
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. pop — to visit
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. pop — music
  22. present — the time now
  23. pop — soda
  24. wound — an injury

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