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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. foot — a measure
  5. file — a tool
  6. scale — in music
  7. rock — a stone
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rock — music
  14. file — a line of people
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. season — in sport
  18. mate — to breed
  19. scale — size or range
  20. season — of the year
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. file — a document

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