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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 120 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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pit — in a race
  5. pit — a hole
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. spell — letters
  8. hand — help
  9. spell — a short time
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. rule — government
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. hand — in cards
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. rule — a law
  19. saw — the tool
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. saw — the tool
  22. spell — magic
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. hand — part of the body

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