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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: mug · pit · mate · pitcher · cabinet · chair · net · rash

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. net — in sport
  4. mug — a face
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — after costs
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mug — a cup
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. mug — to rob
  12. rash — hasty
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. rash — a series
  21. chair — a leader
  22. pit — a hole
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. chair — to sit on

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