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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pit — in a race
  3. kid — to tease
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. ball — a great time
  6. last — finally
  7. chest — of your body
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. kick — in football
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. last — to go on
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — clever
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. last — final
  18. chest — a box
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. chest — of your body
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pit — a hole
  24. ball — a dance

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