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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bass — the fish
  6. root — the cause
  7. pit — in a race
  8. root — of a word
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bat — the animal
  11. mate — a friend
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. pit — a hole
  14. mate — to breed
  15. track — a path
  16. bass — low music
  17. track — a song
  18. capital — a city
  19. root — of a plant
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. capital — money
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. pass — a permit
  24. pass — to spend time

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