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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pit — in a race
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. club — a group
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. roll — a cake
  9. club — for dancing
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. pit — a hole
  13. last — to go on
  14. chest — of your body
  15. club — for golf
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. roll — a list
  18. last — finally
  19. chest — a box
  20. last — final
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — after costs

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