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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 · capital · wake · squash · fall · can · dip · ball

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. squash — the sport
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. wake — a trail
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. squash — to crush
  8. fall — to drop
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. can — a tin
  11. capital — a city
  12. fall — the season
  13. fall — to drop
  14. ball — a dance
  15. ball — a great time
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. can — to be able to
  21. dip — to sink
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. can — a tin

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