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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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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 · kid · pitcher · bank · hand · kick · face · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. hand — in cards
  4. kid — child
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bank — for money
  7. squash — the sport
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bank — of a river
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. kick — in football
  14. bank — for money
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. squash — to crush
  18. hand — help
  19. face — to confront
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. pit — in a race
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pit — a hole

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