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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mine — for digging
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. pit — in a race
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. deal — to handle
  16. saw — the tool
  17. stock — shares
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. stock — goods
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. pit — a hole
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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