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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. rest — what's left
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. mark — a trace
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. spring — a coil
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cell — a phone
  11. pit — in a race
  12. spring — the season
  13. cap — a lid
  14. mark — a grade
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cap — a hat
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. pit — a hole
  23. spring — of water
  24. rest — what's left

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