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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. mug — a cup
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. ground — crushed
  7. ground — a position
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. mug — to rob
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. pit — a hole
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. rule — a law
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mug — a face
  17. pit — in a race
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rule — government
  20. bat — the animal
  21. ground — the earth
  22. saw — the tool
  23. mine — for digging
  24. saw — the tool

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