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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. chest — of your body
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — to wash
  8. chest — a box
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — completely
  11. chest — of your body
  12. club — a group
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — for golf
  20. season — of the year
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — to push
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — in sport

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