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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. spring — of water
  3. scale — size or range
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. pit — in a race
  6. track — to keep track
  7. court — of law
  8. court — for sport
  9. pit — a hole
  10. scale — in music
  11. track — a path
  12. court — of a king
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. deal — to handle
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — the season
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. foot — a measure
  21. snap — to click
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. track — a song

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