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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pit — in a race
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bore — to tire
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. capital — a city
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. wake — a trail
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. bore — to drill
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bat — the animal
  24. pit — a hole

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