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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 116 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: bound · net · pitcher · hand · row · stick · land · track

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. hand — help
  4. net — in sport
  5. row — to paddle
  6. land — ground
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. net — for catching
  9. bound — certain
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. row — a line
  12. net — after costs
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. land — a country
  15. bound — obliged
  16. track — a path
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. bound — tied together
  19. track — to keep track
  20. track — a song
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. land — to come down

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