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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: racket · pitcher · snap · mate · content · bark · patient · object

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. mate — a friend
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. object — to protest
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. mate — a partner
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. snap — to click
  11. object — an aim
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. bark — to shout
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. content — the amount
  19. mate — to breed
  20. content — happy
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. object — a thing
  24. patient — a sick person

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