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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 116 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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. cap — a hat
  5. game — a match
  6. season — of the year
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. file — a tool
  10. shower — to wash
  11. cap — a lid
  12. tear — to rip
  13. file — a document
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pit — a hole
  19. file — a line of people
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — in sport
  22. shower — rain
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. cap — of ice

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