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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: pit · mug · patient · snap · pitcher · current · spell · net

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. spell — a short time
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. spell — letters
  6. mug — a face
  7. pit — in a race
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. net — after costs
  10. current — happening now
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. spell — magic
  13. mug — to rob
  14. net — for catching
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. mug — a cup
  20. current — of water
  21. net — in sport
  22. current — electric
  23. pit — a hole
  24. snap — to click

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