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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pitch — completely
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. wound — an injury
  10. date — the fruit
  11. capital — a city
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pop — soda
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pop — music
  17. capital — money
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. saw — the tool
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. wound — an injury

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