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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 116 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: land · last · pitcher · ground · mug · sharp · ball · club

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. mug — to rob
  3. sharp — clever
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. ball — a great time
  7. last — final
  8. land — ground
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. land — a country
  11. last — to go on
  12. club — for golf
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. mug — a cup
  15. ground — a position
  16. land — to come down
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — crushed
  19. last — finally
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. ball — a dance
  22. club — a group
  23. mug — a face
  24. club — for dancing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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