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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pit · season · ball · hand · pitcher · sharp · coach · game

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. season — of the year
  3. pit — a hole
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. sharp — clever
  7. hand — help
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. ball — a dance
  10. pit — in a race
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. hand — in cards
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. game — a match
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. season — in sport
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. ball — a great time

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