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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. pit — in a race
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. chest — of your body
  11. current — of water
  12. wound — an injury
  13. current — happening now
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wound — an injury
  16. court — of law
  17. chest — a box
  18. court — for sport
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. current — electric
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. court — of a king

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