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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — completely
  7. tube — a container
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. hand — in cards
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. bore — to drill
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pop — soda
  14. bore — to tire
  15. pop — music
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. pop — to visit
  18. hand — help
  19. cold — not warm
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. pit — in a race
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. bore — gave birth

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