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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. bore — to tire
  3. land — a country
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pit — a hole
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pit — in a race
  12. net — after costs
  13. land — ground
  14. pitch — completely
  15. present — a gift
  16. net — for catching
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. net — in sport
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. present — there
  21. land — to come down
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. present — the time now

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