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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. tear — from crying
  3. club — for golf
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. ground — a position
  6. spell — a short time
  7. spell — magic
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. tear — from crying
  10. spell — letters
  11. ground — the earth
  12. club — a group
  13. tear — to rip
  14. ground — crushed
  15. pit — in a race
  16. content — happy
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. cue — a signal
  19. club — for dancing
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cue — for pool
  22. pit — a hole
  23. content — the amount
  24. temple — side of the head

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