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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. pit — in a race
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — an aim
  5. present — the time now
  6. present — there
  7. pit — a hole
  8. content — happy
  9. present — a gift
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. game — wild animals
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. content — the amount
  18. wake — a trail
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. snap — to click
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. game — a match
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. object — a thing

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