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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: squash · cold · pitcher · march · fan · pit · bass · ball

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. ball — a great time
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. march — the month
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. cold — an illness
  9. pit — in a race
  10. bass — the fish
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bass — low music
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. march — the month
  19. squash — to crush
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. ball — a dance
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. march — music
  24. ball — a round shape

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