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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. land — ground
  3. spell — letters
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. spell — magic
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — a country
  8. chip — to eat
  9. saw — the tool
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. pit — a hole
  12. bound — tied together
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bound — obliged
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bound — certain
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. tear — from crying
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. spell — a short time
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. pit — in a race

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