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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. squash — the sport
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. squash — to crush
  9. net — after costs
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. plane — a tool
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. net — for catching
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — the animal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. kick — in football
  22. net — in sport
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. plane — in geometry

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