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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: pop · wound · racket · clip · pitcher · cue · mine · rash

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. rash — a series
  3. cue — a signal
  4. wound — an injury
  5. clip — for paper
  6. pop — to visit
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cue — a hint
  9. mine — for digging
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. pop — soda
  14. wound — an injury
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. clip — a video
  21. pop — music
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cue — for pool
  24. rash — hasty

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