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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. pit — in a race
  3. field — a subject
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. roll — a cake
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. chest — a box
  9. field — farmland
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. field — for sport
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pit — a hole
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. chest — of your body

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