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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. rest — a break
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. row — a line
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. row — to paddle
  8. rash — a series
  9. bore — to tire
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bulb — for light
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pit — in a race
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. row — a quarrel

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