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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 116 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. lean — thin
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. race — a contest
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. pass — a permit
  14. race — the arms race
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. pit — in a race
  18. race — humankind
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. lean — to bend
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bat — the animal

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