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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. kid — child
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — a trail
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. kid — to tease
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. net — for catching
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. net — after costs
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. pitch — completely
  18. band — a ring
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. band — a music group
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. ball — a great time

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