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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. mark — a grade
  3. bear — the animal
  4. ball — a dance
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. mark — a trace
  7. clip — a video
  8. ball — a great time
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wake — a trail
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bear — the animal
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. kid — child
  19. clip — to cut
  20. pit — in a race
  21. saw — the tool
  22. clip — for paper
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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