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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. board — to get on
  5. pit — a hole
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. perch — the fish
  12. bulb — for light
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cell — in biology
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. fork — in a road
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. board — a committee
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. cell — a phone
  24. pit — in a race

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