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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. club — a group
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. pit — a hole
  5. saw — the tool
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bore — to tire
  12. club — for dancing
  13. bore — to drill
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. file — a document
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. file — a line of people
  22. club — for golf
  23. file — a tool
  24. date — the fruit

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