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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. pit — in a race
  4. prune — to trim
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wake — a trail
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fall — to drop
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. dip — to sink
  13. pit — a hole
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. mug — a face
  16. fall — to drop
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. game — a match
  20. mug — a cup
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. mug — to rob
  23. game — wild animals
  24. lash — an eyelash

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