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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. court — for sport
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. board — to get on
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. pit — in a race
  9. suit — clothes
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. suit — to fit
  13. cell — a phone
  14. court — of law
  15. suit — in cards
  16. board — a committee
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. pit — a hole
  21. game — a match
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. court — of a king
  24. game — wild animals

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