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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. rest — a break
  3. club — for golf
  4. game — a match
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pit — a hole
  7. tear — from crying
  8. field — a subject
  9. club — a group
  10. game — wild animals
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — what's left
  14. file — a document
  15. club — for dancing
  16. field — for sport
  17. tear — to rip
  18. field — farmland
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. file — a tool
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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