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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. last — finally
  3. pit — a hole
  4. mate — to breed
  5. kid — to tease
  6. current — electric
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. chest — a box
  9. fine — high quality
  10. chest — of your body
  11. current — happening now
  12. last — final
  13. kid — child
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — a friend
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. pit — in a race
  18. current — of water
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. last — to go on
  22. fine — all right
  23. chest — of your body
  24. fine — a penalty

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