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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 · court · race · leaves · foot · sharp · mine · chip

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. mine — for digging
  4. court — of law
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. sharp — clever
  7. race — humankind
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. court — of a king
  11. race — the arms race
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. court — for sport
  15. race — a contest
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. chip — to eat
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. foot — a measure
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. chip — for betting

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