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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 124 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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. firm — steady
  4. last — final
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. root — of a plant
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. pit — in a race
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. mine — for digging
  15. firm — a company
  16. pit — a hole
  17. firm — decided
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. last — finally
  20. root — of a word
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. root — the cause
  24. last — to go on

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