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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: ground · game · pitcher · pound · march · mug · craft · row

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. craft — boats
  3. craft — a skill
  4. game — wild animals
  5. march — the month
  6. row — to paddle
  7. march — music
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. mug — a face
  12. ground — the earth
  13. game — a match
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. mug — to rob
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. pound — a weight
  21. row — a line
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. march — the month

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