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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. pit — in a race
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. board — to get on
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. board — a committee
  9. race — the arms race
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. capital — money
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fine — all right
  18. capital — a city
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fall — the season
  22. pit — a hole
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fine — a penalty

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