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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. charge — in control
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. field — a subject
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bat — the animal
  8. ball — a great time
  9. pit — a hole
  10. prune — to trim
  11. field — for sport
  12. charge — a price
  13. last — final
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. wind — moving air
  16. last — finally
  17. field — farmland
  18. ball — a dance
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. last — to go on
  21. charge — electricity
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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