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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · dip · pitcher · file · mine · cap · cell · racket

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — for digging
  6. file — a line of people
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. cell — a phone
  10. file — a tool
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. file — a document
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cap — of ice
  16. pound — a weight
  17. dip — to sink
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. cap — a hat

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