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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cap — of ice
  7. cap — a hat
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. prune — to trim
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. rush — hurry
  14. fine — all right
  15. cap — a lid
  16. tear — to rip
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. band — a ring
  20. tear — from crying
  21. band — a music group
  22. prune — to trim
  23. fine — high quality
  24. prune — the fruit

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