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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: cue · pitcher · file · squash · net · ground · tear · pass

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. ground — a position
  3. tear — to rip
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. squash — the sport
  7. cue — a hint
  8. tear — from crying
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cue — for pool
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. ground — the earth
  14. cue — a signal
  15. ground — crushed
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. file — a line of people
  19. tear — from crying
  20. file — a tool
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. file — a document
  24. net — in sport

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