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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 120 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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. field — for sport
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. race — a contest
  5. ground — crushed
  6. bore — to tire
  7. pit — in a race
  8. suit — clothes
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pit — a hole
  11. band — a music group
  12. bore — to drill
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — to fit
  15. ground — a position
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. field — a subject
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. band — a ring
  20. ground — the earth
  21. race — humankind
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. field — farmland
  24. band — a rubber band

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