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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: ground · swing · pound · pitcher · craft · net · bark · spring

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. ground — crushed
  3. swing — music
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. swing — in golf
  6. spring — of water
  7. ground — the earth
  8. craft — a skill
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. pound — a weight
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. craft — boats
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spring — the season
  23. bark — to shout
  24. ground — a position

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