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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bulb — for light
  5. fine — all right
  6. chest — of your body
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — the fruit
  15. pit — in a race
  16. chest — a box
  17. bulb — for light
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. chest — of your body
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. fine — high quality
  24. snap — to click

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