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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · land · track · leaves · foot · wind · chest · racket

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. land — to come down
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. track — a path
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. wind — moving air
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. foot — a measure
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. track — a song
  18. chest — a box
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. land — ground
  22. track — to keep track
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. land — a country

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