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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. rash — a series
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. chair — a leader
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. clip — for paper
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — a video
  13. rash — hasty
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — completely
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. pop — music
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. squash — the sport
  23. pit — a hole
  24. pop — soda

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