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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  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. fine — all right
  2. rock — music
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. court — of law
  5. fine — high quality
  6. chest — a box
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. court — for sport
  9. tube — a container
  10. chest — of your body
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. tube — the underground
  14. pit — a hole
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rock — a stone
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. court — of a king
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  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