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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. charge — a price
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. staff — employees
  6. cold — an illness
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. charge — in control
  11. cue — for pool
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. charge — electricity
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cue — a signal
  18. staff — employees
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pound — a weight
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. staff — a stick
  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