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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 120 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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. fine — high quality
  8. pit — in a race
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pit — a hole
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. wax — to grow
  14. bass — the fish
  15. mark — a grade
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. fine — all right
  18. pitch — completely
  19. kick — in football
  20. bass — low music
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. pitch — a sports field

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