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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. tear — from crying
  4. court — for sport
  5. race — a contest
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. fork — in a road
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. pit — a hole
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. mine — for digging
  15. race — the arms race
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. race — humankind
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. court — of a king
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. pit — in a race
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. court — of law

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