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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. craft — a skill
  3. mate — a partner
  4. swing — to play on
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pit — in a race
  7. drill — army training
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. drill — the tool
  13. mate — a friend
  14. drill — a practice
  15. kid — to tease
  16. swing — in golf
  17. craft — boats
  18. pound — a weight
  19. kid — child
  20. swing — music
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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