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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. key — the most important part
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. shower — rain
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. lie — to recline
  13. pit — in a race
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. wax — to grow
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. key — for a lock
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — to wash
  21. pit — a hole
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. key — in music
  24. lie — an untruth

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