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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: roll · ball · racket · wound · spell · wake · pitcher · pound

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. roll — a cake
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pound — a weight
  7. ball — a great time
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. ball — a dance
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. spell — letters
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. spell — a short time
  23. roll — a list
  24. spell — magic

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