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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. current — of water
  4. snap — to click
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. roll — a list
  7. pit — in a race
  8. land — ground
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. current — electric
  11. row — to paddle
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. current — happening now
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of law
  18. pit — a hole
  19. land — to come down
  20. court — of a king
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. roll — a cake
  23. land — a country
  24. roll — on a roll

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