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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 · perch · ground · tear · court · safe · wound · chip

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. court — of law
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — crushed
  5. chip — to eat
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. tear — to rip
  8. perch — the fish
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chip — for betting
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. court — for sport
  15. tear — from crying
  16. ground — a position
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. wound — an injury
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. court — of a king

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