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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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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 · kid · press · bowl · club · chest · last · drill

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. drill — a practice
  3. club — a group
  4. chest — a box
  5. press — newspapers
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. last — final
  8. club — for dancing
  9. drill — army training
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. last — to go on
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. press — to push
  14. club — for golf
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. kid — child
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. drill — the tool
  22. last — finally
  23. kid — to tease
  24. press — a publisher

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