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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.

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: mate · pitcher · snap · date · row · present · racket · spring

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mate — to breed
  3. spring — a coil
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. snap — to click
  6. present — the time now
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. row — a line
  10. present — there
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. mate — a partner
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. spring — the season
  17. row — to paddle
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. date — the fruit
  21. present — a gift
  22. spring — of water
  23. mate — a friend
  24. pitcher — a jug

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