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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. bank — of a river
  6. hand — help
  7. mate — a partner
  8. current — electric
  9. hand — in cards
  10. current — of water
  11. pit — in a race
  12. current — happening now
  13. row — a line
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bank — for money
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bank — for money
  20. land — to come down
  21. mate — a friend
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pitch — completely

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