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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. craft — boats
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. hand — help
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. dip — to sink
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. cell — in biology
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. pit — in a race
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cell — a phone
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. stand — to bear
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. cell — in a prison

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