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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. last — final
  3. rush — hurry
  4. last — to go on
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. cap — of ice
  7. mark — a trace
  8. tear — to rip
  9. cap — a lid
  10. dip — to sink
  11. tear — from crying
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mark — a grade
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. cap — a hat
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. craft — boats
  21. pit — in a race
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. pit — a hole
  24. last — finally

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