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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pit — a hole
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. spell — letters
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. row — a line
  10. spell — magic
  11. club — for golf
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. club — for dancing
  14. row — to paddle
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — a container
  17. spell — a short time
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. club — a group
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. wake — a trail
  24. racket — for tennis

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