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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. pit — a hole
  3. ball — a great time
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. ball — a dance
  8. fine — high quality
  9. scale — size or range
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. fine — all right
  12. spring — a coil
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. wound — an injury
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. scale — in music
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. pit — in a race

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