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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. bore — to drill
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. pit — a hole
  8. date — the fruit
  9. kid — to tease
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bore — to tire
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. file — a tool
  14. rock — a stone
  15. kid — child
  16. file — a document
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. rock — music
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. file — a line of people

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