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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. tube — a container
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bank — for money
  7. pass — a permit
  8. shower — rain
  9. bank — of a river
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. pit — in a race
  12. cell — a phone
  13. bank — for money
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pit — a hole
  22. tube — the underground
  23. cell — in biology
  24. tube — in a tire

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