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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. snap — to click
  3. cell — a phone
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bulb — for light
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. scale — in music
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bore — to tire
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. scale — size or range
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pit — in a race
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. bulb — for light
  24. pitcher — a jug

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