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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. rush — hurry
  4. sharp — clever
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — a hole
  10. land — a country
  11. pit — in a race
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bulb — for light
  14. field — for sport
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. field — farmland
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. land — ground
  22. field — a subject
  23. pass — a permit
  24. rush — a thrill

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