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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: plane · patient · sharp · swing · ground · fall · pitcher · racket

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  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. swing — music
  2. ground — crushed
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. fall — the season
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. ground — a position
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. sharp — clever
  13. plane — a tool
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. swing — to play on
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. ground — the earth
  19. swing — in golf
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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