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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: spring · pitcher · game · trunk · prune · snap · ball · nail

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. game — a match
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. spring — the season
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. game — wild animals
  13. ball — a dance
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. spring — a coil
  16. ball — a great time
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. snap — to click
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. prune — to trim
  23. spring — of water
  24. game — a kind of play

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