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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. clip — for paper
  3. pit — a hole
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. object — a thing
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bear — the animal
  10. clip — to cut
  11. mate — a friend
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. cold — not warm
  18. object — to protest
  19. object — an aim
  20. bear — the animal
  21. clip — a video
  22. season — in sport
  23. pit — in a race
  24. season — of the year

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