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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. game — wild animals
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. foot — a measure
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. roll — a list
  17. stand — to bear
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. rash — a series
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. roll — a cake
  24. foot — part of the body

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