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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. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. drill — the tool
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. clip — a video
  7. pitch — completely
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. mine — for digging
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — soda
  14. pit — a hole
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. rush — hurry
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. clip — to cut
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. pop — to visit
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — army training
  24. fall — to drop

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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