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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. snap — to click
  3. last — to go on
  4. rest — a break
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. pit — in a race
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. press — newspapers
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. pit — a hole
  13. press — to push
  14. rest — what's left
  15. last — finally
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. cue — a hint
  18. last — final
  19. rest — what's left
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. press — a publisher
  23. cue — a signal
  24. cue — for pool

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