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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 · spring · saw · wind · mate · hide · game · jam

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. mate — a friend
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. spring — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wind — moving air
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. spring — the season
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. spring — a coil
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. game — a match
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. game — wild animals

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