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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. current — electric
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. kick — in football
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. pit — in a race
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — money
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. wound — an injury
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. current — of water
  21. wound — an injury
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. stem — to come from
  24. current — happening now

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