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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 116 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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. drill — the tool
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — for light
  7. drill — army training
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. bear — the animal
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. row — a line
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pass — a permit

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