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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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. court — of law
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. pit — a hole
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. court — for sport
  17. hand — help
  18. court — of a king
  19. sharp — clever
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. stand — to bear
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. pit — in a race

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