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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bat — the animal
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — in cards
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. chest — of your body
  8. march — music
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. march — the month
  12. chest — of your body
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. current — of water
  16. foot — a measure
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. hand — help
  19. current — electric
  20. pit — in a race
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chest — a box
  23. current — happening now
  24. march — the month

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