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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. pit — a hole
  6. bat — the animal
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. tear — from crying
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. spring — of water
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. stand — to bear
  20. pit — in a race
  21. spring — the season
  22. tear — to rip
  23. mine — belonging to me
  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