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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: bat · pit · ground · rash · straw · fine · branch · pitcher

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. ground — a position
  4. branch — a division
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. ground — the earth
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pit — in a race
  10. rash — a series
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. fine — all right
  18. rash — hasty
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. ground — crushed
  22. pit — a hole
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. bat — the animal

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