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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: bay · wound · mark · rule · game · jam · pitcher · rash

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. rule — a law
  3. wound — an injury
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wound — an injury
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. rash — a series
  12. rule — government
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. game — a match
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. mark — a trace
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. rash — hasty
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mark — a grade
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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