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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. file — a line of people
  3. pit — a hole
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. ball — a dance
  6. kick — in football
  7. pit — in a race
  8. tube — a container
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — to rob
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. court — of a king
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. snap — to click
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. ball — a great time
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a tool

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