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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 116 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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. track — a song
  3. spell — letters
  4. rest — what's left
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pop — music
  7. cold — an illness
  8. track — a path
  9. bore — to tire
  10. bore — to drill
  11. fall — the season
  12. spell — magic
  13. fall — to drop
  14. pop — to visit
  15. fall — to drop
  16. pit — a hole
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. spell — a short time
  20. track — to keep track
  21. pop — soda
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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