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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. drill — a practice
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. hand — help
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. wound — an injury
  10. net — in sport
  11. drill — the tool
  12. net — for catching
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pit — in a race
  15. net — after costs
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. stand — to bear
  20. cue — a hint
  21. drill — army training
  22. pit — a hole
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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