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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. pit — a hole
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — a container
  6. bat — the animal
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. current — happening now
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a grade
  16. mark — a trace
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. kick — in football
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pit — in a race
  21. current — of water
  22. tube — the underground
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. current — electric

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