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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: land · wound · pitcher · trunk · mug · scale · pit · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. scale — in music
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. mug — to rob
  13. wound — an injury
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pit — a hole
  17. mug — a cup
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. land — ground
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mug — a face
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. pit — in a race

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