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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. game — wild animals
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. bear — the animal
  5. can — a tin
  6. swing — in golf
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. drill — army training
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. land — ground
  13. drill — the tool
  14. land — a country
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. swing — music
  17. bear — the animal
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — to be able to
  20. land — to come down
  21. game — a match
  22. swing — to play on
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. drill — a practice

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