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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — a country
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. net — in sport
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. bank — for money
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bank — of a river
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. bank — for money
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. bass — low music
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bass — the fish
  17. pitch — completely
  18. net — after costs
  19. squash — the sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rush — hurry
  24. squash — the vegetable

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