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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. march — the month
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bear — the animal
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. pit — in a race
  13. bear — the animal
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. wound — an injury
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. swing — to play on
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. pit — a hole
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. swing — music

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