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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. fork — in a road
  3. band — a music group
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. tear — to rip
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. bass — low music
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pit — in a race
  12. bass — the fish
  13. land — ground
  14. band — a ring
  15. land — a country
  16. tear — from crying
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. land — to come down
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bass — the instrument

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