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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. drill — a practice
  5. charge — in control
  6. pit — in a race
  7. drill — army training
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. stand — to bear
  10. race — a contest
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. cold — not warm
  15. charge — a price
  16. pit — a hole
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — humankind
  19. foot — a measure
  20. charge — electricity
  21. drill — the tool
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. stand — for spectators

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