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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 116 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: racket · snap · march · wake · tear · tube · pop · pitcher

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. pop — music
  3. snap — to click
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tear — from crying
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. pop — to visit
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — the month
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tube — a container
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. pop — soda
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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