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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. bat — the animal
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. pit — in a race
  6. craft — a skill
  7. charge — electricity
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. craft — boats
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. charge — in control
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. charge — a price
  20. pit — a hole
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. kid — child
  24. prune — to trim

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