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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: game · pitcher · nail · arm · court · kid · jam · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. game — wild animals
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. kid — child
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. root — the cause
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of a king
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. root — of a plant
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. kid — to tease
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. court — of law
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. game — a match

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