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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He was locked up in 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. pit — in a race
  2. stand — to bear
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. pit — a hole
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. rush — hurry
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. cell — a phone
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bat — the animal
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. wound — an injury
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. cell — in a prison
  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