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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. land — to come down
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. land — ground
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. pit — a hole
  10. roll — a cake
  11. cell — a phone
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — in biology
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pit — in a race
  18. bass — the fish
  19. land — a country
  20. bass — low music
  21. club — for golf
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for dancing

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