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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. file — a tool
  3. field — for sport
  4. mug — to rob
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. field — a subject
  7. mug — a face
  8. pit — in a race
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a document
  11. track — a path
  12. track — to keep track
  13. mate — to breed
  14. mug — a cup
  15. pit — a hole
  16. row — a line
  17. wind — moving air
  18. row — to paddle
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mate — a partner
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. field — farmland
  23. track — a song
  24. mate — a friend

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