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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. wake — a trail
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. kid — child
  7. pit — in a race
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. pit — a hole
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. tear — to rip
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. tear — from crying
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. game — wild animals
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. tear — from crying
  24. trunk — of a tree

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