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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. mug — a cup
  3. pop — soda
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. pit — a hole
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. mug — to rob
  9. rush — hurry
  10. face — to confront
  11. pit — in a race
  12. clip — to cut
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. clip — a video
  15. mark — a grade
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mark — a trace
  18. face — part of the head
  19. capital — a city
  20. pop — music
  21. face — to point toward
  22. pop — to visit
  23. clip — for paper
  24. capital — money

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