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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. pop — soda
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pop — to visit
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wake — a trail
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. kick — in football
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. court — of a king
  18. court — of law
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pound — a weight
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. court — for sport
  23. pop — music
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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