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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. field — farmland
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. current — happening now
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. band — a music group
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. current — electric
  11. band — a ring
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pit — in a race
  14. field — for sport
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bore — to tire
  18. pit — a hole
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. current — of water
  23. field — a subject
  24. bore — to drill

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