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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 120 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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. ground — the earth
  5. row — to paddle
  6. ground — crushed
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. kid — child
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. kid — to tease
  12. cap — a hat
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. cap — a lid
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. cap — of ice
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. row — a line
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. ground — a position
  24. stand — to bear

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