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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. snap — to click
  8. net — for catching
  9. cell — a phone
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. net — in sport
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. net — after costs
  20. wake — a trail
  21. chair — a leader
  22. cell — in biology
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. racket — for tennis

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