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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. pit — in a race
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. lean — to bend
  8. pit — a hole
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. scale — in music
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bat — the animal
  14. mine — for digging
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. lean — thin
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. fork — in a road

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