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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. scale — in music
  3. scale — size or range
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. kick — in football
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. capital — a city
  10. field — a subject
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. field — farmland
  13. ground — the earth
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. ground — a position
  17. capital — money
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. field — for sport
  23. pit — in a race
  24. ground — crushed

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