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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. mate — to breed
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. field — for sport
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. field — a subject
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. band — a music group
  11. bore — to drill
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. mate — a partner
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. band — a ring
  16. plane — a tool
  17. bore — to tire
  18. mate — a friend
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. pit — in a race
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. pit — a hole
  24. field — farmland

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