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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. pit — in a race
  5. clip — to cut
  6. fine — high quality
  7. clip — a video
  8. spring — a coil
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. spring — the season
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. fork — in a road
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. pit — a hole
  20. clip — for paper
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fine — all right
  23. chair — a leader
  24. spring — of water

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