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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 · board · shower · tear · pit · fork · kick · wound

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. shower — to wash
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. wound — an injury
  7. kick — in football
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. wound — an injury
  10. shower — rain
  11. board — to get on
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. board — a committee
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pit — a hole
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — in a road
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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