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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: net · court · hand · pitcher · bore · wind · spell · ball

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. wind — moving air
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. net — in sport
  5. hand — help
  6. wind — moving air
  7. hand — in cards
  8. net — for catching
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. spell — magic
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. ball — a great time
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — of law
  16. ball — a dance
  17. court — for sport
  18. spell — a short time
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. net — after costs
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — to tire
  24. spell — letters

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