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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: pitcher · land · hide · pit · prune · swing · current · wound

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. swing — music
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. pit — in a race
  8. swing — in golf
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. wound — an injury
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. current — happening now
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. swing — to play on
  17. prune — to trim
  18. current — of water
  19. current — electric
  20. wound — an injury
  21. prune — to trim
  22. land — to come down
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. land — ground

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