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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. tear — to rip
  7. race — a contest
  8. pit — in a race
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. prune — to trim
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. race — the arms race
  15. tear — from crying
  16. dip — to sink
  17. race — humankind
  18. pit — a hole
  19. prune — to trim
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — music
  23. row — a line
  24. tear — from crying

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