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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. bat — the animal
  3. rock — music
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. pit — in a race
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. chip — to eat
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. foot — a measure
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chip — for betting
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. pit — a hole
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. capital — money
  23. capital — a city
  24. rock — to move gently

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