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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. land — a country
  3. land — ground
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. current — electric
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. fork — in a road
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. current — of water
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. last — finally
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. last — final
  14. current — happening now
  15. wax — to grow
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. game — wild animals
  18. pit — in a race
  19. game — a match
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. last — to go on
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. land — to come down
  24. pit — a hole

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