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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  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. bat — the animal
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. firm — a company
  4. present — there
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pit — in a race
  12. firm — decided
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. firm — steady
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. chip — to eat
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. present — a gift
  20. chip — for betting
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. chip — in a computer
  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