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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pit — in a race
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. press — a publisher
  8. tube — a container
  9. chest — a box
  10. press — to push
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. chest — of your body
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bore — to tire
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. pit — a hole
  17. chest — of your body
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to drill
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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