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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. pit — in a race
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fork — in a road
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. spell — magic
  12. fall — to drop
  13. spell — a short time
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. bat — the animal
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. spell — letters
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wax — to grow
  24. pit — a hole

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