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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: roll · prune · pitcher · pound · game · snap · rash · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. snap — to click
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. roll — a cake
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. rash — a series
  11. roll — a list
  12. rash — hasty
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. game — wild animals
  15. pound — a weight
  16. capital — money
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. game — a match
  20. capital — a city
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. rash — on the skin

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