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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: pitcher · fan · bark · last · stand · land · kick · pop

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. kick — in football
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. last — finally
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pop — music
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. land — to come down
  11. stand — to bear
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. last — final
  21. land — ground
  22. last — to go on
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. land — a country

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