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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. ball — a great time
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. spell — letters
  11. pit — a hole
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. cell — a phone
  16. spell — magic
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wake — a trail
  23. spell — a short time
  24. ball — a dance

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