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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. face — to point toward
  5. game — wild animals
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — shares
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. game — a match
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. face — to confront
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. face — part of the head
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. pit — a hole
  19. current — electric
  20. pit — in a race
  21. current — happening now
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — music
  24. current — of water

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