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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. rest — what's left
  3. field — for sport
  4. club — a group
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. pit — in a race
  7. club — for golf
  8. rest — what's left
  9. snap — to click
  10. clip — to cut
  11. court — of a king
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rest — a break
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of law
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. clip — a video
  21. pit — a hole
  22. clip — for paper
  23. club — for dancing
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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