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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. pit — in a race
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. march — the month
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. march — the month
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. march — music
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. shower — rain
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. wound — an injury
  18. rush — hurry
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — in sport
  24. pit — a hole

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