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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. rush — hurry
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bark — to shout
  8. root — of a plant
  9. pit — a hole
  10. swing — to play on
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. pound — a weight
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. root — the cause
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. swing — music
  22. root — of a word
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. pit — in a race

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