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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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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 · kick · racket · date · ground · nail · wake · mug

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. mug — a face
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. mug — a cup
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. date — the fruit
  10. ground — the earth
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. kick — in football
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. ground — crushed
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. ground — a position
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mug — to rob
  23. wake — a trail
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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