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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 · pitcher · ground · wake · chest · wave · season · perch

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. ball — a dance
  4. ball — a great time
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. ground — a position
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. season — in sport
  19. chest — a box
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. season — of the year
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. perch — the fish
  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