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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: pit · ground · rush · can · straw · wake · pitcher · wound

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. can — to be able to
  5. ground — crushed
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. can — a tin
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. ground — a position
  15. can — a tin
  16. rush — hurry
  17. pit — in a race
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wake — a trail
  24. ground — the earth

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