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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 120 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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cue — a hint
  5. root — the cause
  6. cue — a signal
  7. ground — crushed
  8. pop — music
  9. pop — soda
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. content — the amount
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. ground — a position
  15. content — happy
  16. cue — for pool
  17. ground — the earth
  18. root — of a word
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wake — a trail
  21. pop — to visit
  22. root — of a plant
  23. spring — of water
  24. pit — in a race

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