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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. scale — size or range
  4. kid — child
  5. lean — to bend
  6. plane — a tool
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. chair — a leader
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. scale — in music
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — in a race
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. lean — thin
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wake — a trail
  23. kid — to tease
  24. lean — to rest against

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