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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. kid — child
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. band — a music group
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mate — a partner
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mate — a friend
  11. band — a ring
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. squash — the sport
  16. mate — to breed
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. pit — a hole
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. squash — to crush
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. pit — in a race
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. nail — on a finger

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