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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 120 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. pit — in a race
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. land — a country
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. mine — for digging
  11. snap — to click
  12. land — to come down
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. bulb — for light
  15. land — ground
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. pit — a hole

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