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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. bore — to tire
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rush — hurry
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. land — a country
  8. spell — a short time
  9. land — ground
  10. ball — a dance
  11. land — to come down
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. bore — to drill
  14. spell — magic
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. pit — in a race
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. pit — a hole
  23. wind — moving air
  24. spell — letters

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