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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: patient · firm · net · march · jam · pitcher · game · court

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. court — of law
  3. firm — decided
  4. court — of a king
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. net — for catching
  7. court — for sport
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. march — music
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. game — a match
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. firm — a company
  15. firm — steady
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. march — the month
  21. game — wild animals
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — in sport
  24. march — the month

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