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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  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. land — a country
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — music
  5. pit — in a race
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. land — ground
  8. land — to come down
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. rock — music
  11. date — the fruit
  12. plane — a tool
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. bore — to tire
  15. pop — to visit
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bore — to drill
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. rock — a stone
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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