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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: fall · pitcher · bear · ground · capital · net · march · squash

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. net — in sport
  3. net — after costs
  4. fall — to drop
  5. capital — money
  6. ground — a position
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bear — the animal
  9. squash — to crush
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. bear — the animal
  13. march — the month
  14. capital — a city
  15. fall — the season
  16. march — music
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. fall — to drop
  19. march — the month
  20. squash — the sport
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. net — for catching
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. ground — crushed

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