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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: pitcher · game · ball · root · deal · pitch · net · bear

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. net — for catching
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. game — a match
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bear — the animal
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. deal — to handle
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. root — of a word
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. net — in sport
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. ball — a dance
  17. pitch — completely
  18. root — the cause
  19. root — of a plant
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. ball — a great time
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. game — wild animals
  24. net — after costs

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