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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. board — to get on
  3. wound — an injury
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pit — in a race
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. wound — an injury
  10. tube — the underground
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. prune — to trim
  14. board — a committee
  15. pitch — completely
  16. rush — hurry
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. pit — a hole
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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