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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. wind — moving air
  5. fall — to drop
  6. spell — letters
  7. bound — tied together
  8. spell — a short time
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pit — in a race
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — certain
  13. shower — to wash
  14. pop — music
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — to visit
  17. shower — rain
  18. pit — a hole
  19. fall — the season
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. fall — to drop
  24. spell — magic

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