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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: patient · pitcher · craft · scale · shower · swing · dip · court

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. scale — in music
  4. shower — to wash
  5. court — of a king
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. swing — music
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. court — for sport
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. court — of law
  14. swing — in golf
  15. shower — rain
  16. craft — a skill
  17. scale — size or range
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. dip — to sink
  22. craft — boats
  23. swing — to play on
  24. patient — a sick person

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