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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
468
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: chair · stick · pitcher · hand · net · ball · shower · can

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. net — for catching
  3. ball — a great time
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — to be able to
  8. ball — a dance
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. can — a tin
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. hand — in cards
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. hand — help
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. shower — rain
  18. net — in sport
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chair — a leader
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. net — after costs

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