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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wake · track · perch · racket · fan · land · hand · pitcher

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. track — a path
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. land — a country
  6. track — a song
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. track — to keep track
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. land — ground
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. wake — a trail
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. hand — help
  24. land — to come down

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