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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: ball · wound · pitcher · foot · mine · cap · mug · date

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. cap — a hat
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. mug — to rob
  5. ball — a great time
  6. mug — a face
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. mine — for digging
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. foot — a measure
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. mug — a cup
  19. ball — a dance
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. cap — a lid
  23. cap — of ice
  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