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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. court — of a king
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. court — for sport
  5. season — in sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bore — to drill
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. roll — a cake
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pit — in a race
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. season — of the year
  15. court — of law
  16. roll — a list
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. foot — a measure
  20. bore — to tire
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. snap — to click

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