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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. 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. pop — music
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. mark — a trace
  5. spring — the season
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. pop — to visit
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. current — electric
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pop — soda
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. mark — a grade
  14. spring — of water
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. row — to paddle
  17. current — happening now
  18. current — of water
  19. bat — the animal
  20. spring — a coil
  21. row — a line
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the sport
  24. 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