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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. game — wild animals
  3. pit — in a race
  4. tube — a container
  5. season — in sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. march — music
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. season — of the year
  12. chest — of your body
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. chest — a box
  15. march — the month
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. deal — to handle
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. game — a match
  22. march — the month
  23. pit — a hole
  24. jam — in traffic

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