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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: rule · pitcher · ground · bore · bass · kick · hand · bat

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. rule — government
  5. hand — help
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. hand — in cards
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. rule — a law
  12. bat — the animal
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bore — to drill
  17. ground — a position
  18. bass — the fish
  19. kick — in football
  20. ground — crushed
  21. bass — low music
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. bore — to tire
  24. ground — the earth

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