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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. pit — a hole
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pit — in a race
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. spring — the season
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — to tire
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — a safe
  11. mug — to rob
  12. degree — temperature
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — of water
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mug — a cup
  18. degree — from a university
  19. press — a publisher
  20. mug — a face
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. press — to push
  23. press — newspapers
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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