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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pit — in a race
  9. prune — to trim
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — for digging
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. game — a match
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. pit — a hole
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. prune — to trim
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. mine — an explosive

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