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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. snap — to click
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. row — to paddle
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. current — happening now
  11. mine — for digging
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. row — a line
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pit — in a race
  21. current — electric
  22. pitch — completely
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. current — of water

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