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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. land — a country
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. board — a committee
  6. season — of the year
  7. land — ground
  8. wind — moving air
  9. court — for sport
  10. season — in sport
  11. board — to get on
  12. suit — in cards
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — a container
  15. land — to come down
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — of law
  18. pit — a hole
  19. suit — clothes
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. suit — to fit
  23. pit — in a race
  24. wind — moving air

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