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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. wake — a trail
  5. mug — to rob
  6. bore — to tire
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bore — to drill
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. mug — a face
  15. cell — a phone
  16. pit — in a race
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pound — a weight
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. chest — a box
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. mug — a cup

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