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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. pit — in a race
  3. mate — a friend
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mug — a face
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. pit — a hole
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rash — a series
  10. cue — for pool
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cue — a signal
  15. mate — a partner
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. mug — a cup
  18. mug — to rob
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cue — a hint
  22. chair — a leader
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. rash — on the skin

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