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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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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 · trunk · pitcher · bat · bear · game · coach · wake

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. wake — a trail
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. bear — the animal
  10. game — wild animals
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. game — a match
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. pound — a weight
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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