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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. kid — child
  4. mate — a friend
  5. mate — a partner
  6. march — music
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. pit — in a race
  9. content — happy
  10. pit — a hole
  11. march — the month
  12. object — a thing
  13. object — to protest
  14. prune — to trim
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. mate — to breed
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. object — an aim
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. march — the month
  23. prune — to trim
  24. content — the amount

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