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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 120 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: ball · pit · bat · cap · deal · pitcher · mug · cold

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. ball — a great time
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. cold — an illness
  10. mug — to rob
  11. pit — a hole
  12. mug — a cup
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pit — in a race
  16. cap — of ice
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. deal — to handle
  22. ball — a dance
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. pitcher — a jug

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