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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. roll — a cake
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. chip — for betting
  10. pit — in a race
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. lie — to recline
  13. cell — a phone
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. cell — in biology
  16. field — for sport
  17. pit — a hole
  18. field — a subject
  19. chip — to eat
  20. plane — a tool
  21. field — farmland
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. coach — a trainer

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