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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: saw · can · file · snap · game · pitcher · ground · fine

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. fine — all right
  6. ground — crushed
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. ground — the earth
  9. file — a tool
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. fine — high quality
  14. can — a tin
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. saw — the tool
  17. snap — to click
  18. can — a tin
  19. file — a document
  20. ground — a position
  21. game — a match
  22. game — wild animals
  23. file — a line of people
  24. can — to be able to

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