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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. pit — in a race
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. cold — not warm
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. pop — soda
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pop — to visit
  13. pop — music
  14. pit — a hole
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. pound — a weight
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — a law
  23. cold — an illness
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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