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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: tear · fan · land · pitcher · wake · swing · pit · ground

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. ground — the earth
  3. wake — a trail
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. swing — in golf
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. pit — in a race
  12. land — to come down
  13. ground — a position
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pit — a hole
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. swing — music
  19. ground — crushed
  20. land — ground
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. tear — from crying
  24. land — a country

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