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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. stand — to bear
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pit — a hole
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. ground — the earth
  9. staff — employees
  10. pit — in a race
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. spring — of water
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. spring — the season
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. rest — a break
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ground — crushed
  23. branch — a division
  24. stand — on your feet

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