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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cold — an illness
  3. suit — clothes
  4. kick — in football
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pit — a hole
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cold — not warm
  11. ground — a position
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. file — a document
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. court — of law
  18. suit — in cards
  19. suit — to fit
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. court — of a king
  23. pit — in a race
  24. court — for sport

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