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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: squash · pit · fan · bass · pitcher · key · saw · lean

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. squash — the sport
  3. pit — in a race
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pit — a hole
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. saw — the tool
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. key — for a lock
  11. bass — the fish
  12. key — the most important part
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. squash — to crush
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. lean — thin
  19. key — in music
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. bass — low music
  22. lean — to bend
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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