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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. tube — the underground
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. tube — a container
  5. craft — a skill
  6. pit — in a race
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. pit — a hole
  9. club — for dancing
  10. hand — in cards
  11. spring — a coil
  12. hand — help
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. spring — the season
  18. club — for golf
  19. club — a group
  20. craft — boats
  21. spring — of water
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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