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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. pit — a hole
  3. current — of water
  4. spring — the season
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. land — a country
  8. face — part of the head
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. current — happening now
  12. spring — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. face — to confront
  15. spring — a coil
  16. prune — to trim
  17. land — ground
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. last — to go on
  20. land — to come down
  21. last — final
  22. prune — to trim
  23. last — finally
  24. face — to point toward

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