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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. plane — a tool
  3. spring — of water
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. mate — to breed
  6. content — happy
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. spring — the season
  12. pit — in a race
  13. wind — moving air
  14. present — the time now
  15. wind — moving air
  16. present — a gift
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mate — a partner
  19. toast — bread
  20. present — there
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. spring — a coil
  23. content — the amount
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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